Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor

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Speaking to a teleconference audience of reporters around the nation, former Gov. Tony Knowles and current Ketchikan Mayor Bob Weinstein ... accused Palin of misleading the public in her new role as the vice presidential running mate of Arizona Sen. John McCain.

...

Knowles broke new ground while answering a reporter’s question on whether Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor.

True, Knowles said.

Eight years ago, complaints about charging rape victims for medical exams in Wasilla prompted the Alaska Legislature to pass a bill -- signed into law by Knowles -- that banned the practice statewide.

"There was one town in Alaska that was charging victims for this, and that was Wasilla," Knowles said

A May 23, 2000, article in Wasilla’s newspaper, The Frontiersman, noted that Alaska State Troopers and most municipal police agencies regularly pay for such exams, which cost between $300 and $1,200 apiece.

"(But) the Wasilla police department does charge the victims of sexual assault for the tests," the newspaper reported.

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/2008/vie...&position=9

[IAMX 3,055]

The rapists vote Sarah Palin -- will you?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

The rapists vote Sarah Palin -- will you?

It's lonely up in Alaska. Cut the rapists a break. Sarah Palin did!

[panamania79 2]

The rapists vote Sarah Palin -- will you?

It's lonely up in Alaska. Cut the rapists a break. Sarah Palin did!

[Chica Yeyé 41]

If it is indeed true -- it's stupid. For crying out loud: you get violated and you have to pay for the tests to prove it??? #######.

[jundp 191]

I'd heard this before but was unsure if it was true.

Weird. And also doing a great job of keeping rape victims from stepping forward. Or keeping pretend rape victims from falsely accusing....

[alienlovechild 75]

Knowles and Weinstein also went after the Republican ticket on several statements now airing in campaign ads around the nation, including Palin’s claim that she opposed federal money for the "bridge to nowhere."

What does the bridge have to do with rape tests?

Knowles broke new ground while answering a reporter’s question on whether Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor.

Yeah, he's credible. You can always trust your political opponents to tell the truth about you.

[PlatyPius 5]

Knowles broke new ground while answering a reporter's question on whether Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor.

Yeah, he's credible. You can always trust your political opponents to tell the truth about you.

Yeah, because there wasn't a newspaper article that said the same damn thing.... must be political. Christ on Toast. ALL of you political fanatics on BOTH sides make me sick.

[IAMX 3,055]

Knowles broke new ground while answering a reporter's question on whether Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor.

Yeah, he's credible. You can always trust your political opponents to tell the truth about you.

Yeah, because there wasn't a newspaper article that said the same damn thing.... must be political. Christ on Toast. ALL of you political fanatics on BOTH sides make me sick.

Can I get an A-MEN.

[jundp 191]

Knowles broke new ground while answering a reporter's question on whether Wasilla forced rape victims to pay for their own forensic tests when Palin was mayor.

Yeah, he's credible. You can always trust your political opponents to tell the truth about you.

Yeah, because there wasn't a newspaper article that said the same damn thing.... must be political. Christ on Toast. ALL of you political fanatics on BOTH sides make me sick.

Love you Platy.

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Life begins at rape... ask Mayor Sarah Palin

By Shannyn Moore

Can you imagine having to pay for the CSI (crime scene investigation-fingerprinting, photography, etc) if your home was robbed? What if a bill came for the breathalyzer tests if you’d been hit by a drunk driver? When Sarah Palin was mayor, the city of Wasilla had the most egregious policy against victims of rape in the state of Alaska, possibly the entire country. The rape kit, a set of items used by medical personnel for gathering and preserving physical evidence following a sexual assault, was charged to the victim.

I sat with a rape victim during the “harvesting of evidence”. Mascara smeared eyes stared blankly out from a cave of shame. “We’ve got swimmers,” announced the forensic tech in the lab next door. My friend didn’t look surprised. In her 60’s, she was still asked if she felt the need for emergency contraception. Surviving the process would have only been compounded and made worse with an itemized bill; victimized twice courtesy of Sarah Palin and the city of Wasilla.

Much can be learned about the Palin Administration’s family values from reviewing their spending priorities. Former Chief of Police Irl Stambaugh included forensic rape kits (up to $1,200 per kit) in his budget requests. He was fired by Palin in 1997. In her termination letter, Palin wrote, “…I do not feel I have your full support in my efforts to govern the city of Wasilla. Therefore I intend to terminate your employment. . . ” Staumbaugh headed the police department since it was created in 1993. Before that, he served 22 years with the Anchorage Police Department rising to the rank of captain. Sarah Palin hired Charlie Fannon as the new Wasilla Chief of Police and said it was one of her best decisions as mayor. Fannon eliminated the forensic rape kits from the budget. Though the number of rapes weren’t reported, Fannon claimed it would save Wasilla taxpayers $5,000 to $14,000 a year.

When Eric Croft, a Democrat Legislator from Anchorage, learned of Wasilla’s policy, he drafted HB 270, which Governor Tony Knowles signed into law. The new law made it illegal for any law enforcement agency to bill victims or victims’ insurance companies for the costs of examinations to collect evidence of a sexual assault or determine if a sexual assault actually occurred. Upon signing the law, Governor Knowles said, “We would never bill the victim of a burglary for the cost of gathering evidence, nor should we bill rape victims just because the crime scene happens to be their bodies.”

Wasilla Police Chief Fannon protested the new law stating it would require the city and communities to come up with more funds to cover the costs of the forensic exams. Really? Are the true costs of sexual assault and forcible rape in a community only measured and reflected in the dollars spent on the forensic rape kit?

Alaska has the nation’s highest per-capita rate of forcible rape. A disproportionate number of rape and sexual assault victims are Native Alaskan women. Alaska Native people in Anchorage were 9.7 times more likely to be sexually assaulted than others living in the city between 2000 and 2003. Alaska crime statistics never seemed to make a “Northern Exposure” episode. But this isn’t about statistics-real lives were affected by Palin’s regressive policies. One thing Alaska can’t seem to export is the fundamental information around a woman’s rights. Alaska “liberalized” abortion laws before Roe v. Wade. Our dirty secret had to do with a woman’s right to be safe from rapists. This right to choose was not only threatened, but abolished with Sarah Palin’s archaic policy as Mayor of Wasilla. The rape kit included emergency contraception. To be sure, emergency contraception is not, nor does it cause an abortion. In fact, ec prevents pregnancy and therefore reduces abortions.

Under Palin’s Administration, “Life Begins at Rape” for women unable to pay for their forensic evidence gathering. Justice is served to women who can afford it and denied for those who can’t. I live in Alaska-the wealthiest of the 50 states! Forcing rape victims to pay for their own forensic rape kits is something one would expect to find in a fundamentalist country overseas. I have outrage fatigue. I can’t decide which facet of this policy is more upsetting. Is it the denial of justice for the poor? Is it the punishment of women who had been raped? Is it the political policies of a woman so entrenched in the “Pro-Life” movement she would deny justice to a victim? This is not a “Pro-Life” policy. This is a “Pro-Rapist” policy, and forced pregnancy policy.

It should be noted Joe Biden introduced legislation to fund rape kits to women in America. John McCain voted against it.

When Sarah Palin was elected Alaska’s first female governor, I hoped these issues would be addressed as part of her “historic” platform. When Amnesty International published their study on rape statistics and Alaskan women, the response was pathetic. The now dismissed Commissioner of Public Safety, Walt Monegan, acknowledged the lack of law enforcement in Alaska as part of the problem. Since that time, Walt Monegan has been fired and $2.5 million dollars threatened from the budget for State Troopers. John Cyr is executive director of the Public Safety Employees Association, and has been very critical of the Palin administration’s commitment to keep Alaskan’s safer.

Under the Palin Administration, a law was passed that specifically deals with rapists. I am not making this up. It is now illegal for Alaskans to buy or sell the “Rapist No. 1” doll. Oh, you haven’t heard of it? It’s an “action figure” from Quentin Tarantino’s film “Grindhouse.” Yes, really. So now if you’re raped, you can take comfort in knowing Alaska outlawed an action figure.

For all the Alaskans who have taken the charge to protect fellow citizens from predators, this was A GIANT WASTE OF TIME. It’s embarrassing to write this. Who in the hell has been prosecuted for this “outrageous” purchase. Did she think people in Alaska with the propensity to rape women were suddenly dissuaded because they couldn’t buy a movie action figure?

If Alaska’s sexual assault statistics were true for the rest of the country, rape would be considered an epidemic and the National Guard would be called up. As Mayor and Governor, Sarah Palin has made justice illusive to criminals and forensics a commodity that victims must purchase. Meanwhile, rape prevention sits on the backburner. Being a rape victim isn’t necessary for outrage. You don’t need ovaries to protect the physical sanctity of fellow citizens. Life does not begin at rape, it just gets harder.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

*shakes head*

[pedroh 21]

#######.. that's really effed up..

but I'm sure it's a lie right

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

#######.. that's really effed up..

but I'm sure it's a lie right

I'm sure they'll say it is. I'm also quite certain that it isn't. This woman is fcuked up in her head.

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but I'm sure it's a lie right

Of course. After all, Palin is a friend of Jesus.