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56 | 5 Allison and James From Horror to Gratitude Facts of case: In 1981, twenty-one-year-old James broke into a family ’s home with the intent to commit burglary. He raped one of the daughters, nineteen years old, and almost killed her (by choking) during the assault. James was caught within a month, and he confessed. He was sentenced for second-degree rape and second-degree burglary and received a forty-fiveyear sentence. Twenty-five years after the rape, James and his victim met through VVH while he was still incarcerated. James was released from prison in 2007, having served twenty-six years of his sentence. This chapter follows a slightly different format because of extenuating circumstances that are discussed more fully in appendix B. It reflects my interview with James, access to his case file and letters he wrote, interviews with Kim, and the videotapes of the dialogue. Rape is not an easy subject for most people. Victims’ responses to traumatic events vary tremendously, but the crime of rape carries an even greater stigma than other crimes because of the shame, victim blaming, and layers of cultural and legal ambiguity attached to it.1 Often the victim and family members are admonished not to tell anyone what happened—a silence that is sometimes welcomed. Unacknowledged trauma often haunts victims of sexual and intimate violence, causing responses such as anxiety, substance abuse, fear of strangers, a feeling of being dirty or ashamed, embarrassment, nightmares, and eating disorders.2 Rape victims often feel guilty, regardless of the circumstances, and second-guess their actions. Psychologist Nicola Gavey writes about rape victims who felt empowered when they either thwarted a sexual assault against them or took steps to minimize the offender ’s attack; their efforts helped them reconcile their experience with few lingering emotional scars.3 Anger can ultimately be cathartic, especially if those feelings were unexpressed at the time of the rape. However, victims seldom Allison and James | 57 have control over when these feelings of anger or powerlessness surface. For instance, if criminal justice officials ask for victims’ input on whether parole should be granted during the time the offender is incarcerated, victims are often reminded of the crime and their fears rekindled.4 In the case I examine in this chapter, the offender, James, was apprehended and accepted a plea bargain. His plea in 1981 did not include an attemptedmurder charge even though he almost killed his victim. The victim, Allison, did not provide any information (contradictory or otherwise) to the court at James’s sentencing. Prior to the victims’ rights movement in the United States, victims and their family members might be interviewed for presentencing investigation (PSI) reports compiled by the probation department, but there was no mechanism that recognized their voices in any formal way. Except in very serious instances, cases were resolved with little or no contact between prosecutor and victim. In most states today, it is routine for victims/survivors to have the opportunity to prepare a victim impact statement or offer input to the prosecutor or directly to the judge (in oral or written form). In practice, however, the majority of victims do not pursue this option, and judges’ sentencing relies entirely on PSI reports prepared by court personnel or probation departments. Pretrial prosecutor-victim contact is now part of the legal culture in Delaware, mandated by policy of the district attorney’s office and the 1992 Victims’ Bill of Rights.5 James’s sentence was forty-five years in prison, reflecting the breaking and entering, robbery, and rape charges. Because of good-time credits (typically, inmates receive five days off their sentence a month for good behavior), James became eligible for parole in 2007 after serving twenty-four years. He fulfilled a work-release requirement and since 2008 has been living back in the community under probation supervision. After James had been incarcerated for a number of years, he became determined to pursue every opportunity to better himself. He read his first book behind bars and took courses to receive his GED and high school diploma. James also took part in victim-sensitivity classes, alternatives-to-violence classes, weekly groups for sex offenders, and a twelve-step program called Sexual Compulsives Anonymous, and he became well trained in virtually every construction-related skill. James also completed a two-thousand-hour State Department of Labor apprenticeship course for computer operators. In the twenty-four years that James was imprisoned for rape, he never...

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