A Question of Belief

For a few hours yesterday, the whole world’s attention was focused on the issue of historical sexual abuse. A candidate for one of the most important jobs in America, an appointment for life, remember, and his accuser, gave evidence before a panel of American senators. There seems little doubt who came over better in the public eye. She was measured, sober and restrained as she gave her testimony of what she recalled of an incident 36 years in the past. Her accuser, on the other hand, was angry, bitter and belligerent. “It’s a carve up!” He as good as said, citing such things as ‘the revenge of the Clintons’ and a liberal conspiracy to scupper his chances of becoming a Supreme Court judge, despite the passionate support of his President.

This case, as is the case with so many claims of historical sexual assault, comes down to he said/she said. Who do you believe? Is is right to believe her, because she came over as the voice of reason, and he came over as some hysterical bully? I think a jury of his peers would have to find him not guilty, if that is he was facing criminal charges, which of course he is not.The statute of limitations in the U.S. means no charges could be brought against him anyway.

As followers of this blog know, I recently faced very serious charges of historical sexual assault, as the result of the allegations of a single female complainant. The case never came to court because the CPS finally faced up to the reality that my accuser had been caught out in one lie too many, and therefore her testimony could not be trusted. But had it gone to trial, it would have come down to the he said/she said scenario, with the jury having to make up their minds whose story they believed: her claims or my denials. Maybe in court her lies would have been exposed by my defence team, leaving the jury doubting her truthfulness. But they might have made a perverse decision, as juries often do, and thought: “All those terrible stories of rape and sexual assault: why would she make them up?”- and convict me on her word alone. It happens all the time.

Back to Mr Kavanaugh. The question really is not, should you send him to prison based on one woman’s claims, but is this the sort of man you would want to be sitting in judgement over his peers in the highest court in the land? And, the answer has to be, in the opinion of this observer at least, no.