RADAR ALERT: D.A. Group Fuels the Problem that It Claims Doesn't Exist

"THERE IS NOT AN EPIDEMIC OF ROGUE PROSECTORS IN AMERICA," claims a recent news release from the National District Attorneys Association, following the disbarment of North Carolina district attorney Michael Nifong.

According to NDAA president Mathias Heck, "The vast majority of prosecutors take their responsibilities very seriously. They seek out truth and justice, wherever it leads." (http://www.ndaa.org/newsroom/pr_duke_case_june_17_07.html)

If that's true, then the NDAA - the group that represents 30,000 district attorneys around the country - has some explaining to do. Because in two weeks, the National District Attorneys Association will be holding a conference called the National Institute on the Prosecution of Sexual Violence. Research shows that about half of all rape claims are false. That means that each year, 47,000 American men, disproportionately Black men, are wrongfully accused of this heinous crime: http://www.mediaradar.org/research_on_false_rape_allegations.php

But take a look at the conference description: http://www.ndaa.org/education/apri/natl_inst_prosecution_sv_annapolis_2007.html. Do you see anything how district attorneys need to sort out false allegations so true rape victims can get the help they need? Anything about the need to prosecute women who commit perjury? Or providing help to the men who are wrongly-accused? The answer to those questions is No, No, and No! Instead, the conference appears to enlist district attorneys in an ideological crusade by "overcoming rape myths" and exposing the "true predatory nature of the offender." The program repeatedly uses the word "victim," but never "alleged victim."

Is this how D.A.s "seek out truth and justice, wherever it leads"? Please e-mail or call the NDAA and ask them this simple question:

"The Michael Nifong case and scientific research show that false allegations of rape are widespread. If NDAA president Mathias Heck's claim that, 'the vast majority of prosecutors ... seek out truth and justice, wherever it leads,' were true, your upcoming National Institute on the Prosecution of Sexual Violence would teach prosecutors techniques for distinguishing between true and false accusations. So, why does your conference instead turn a blind eye to even the possibility of false accusations?"

Be polite and respectful, but be firm. And do it now. We must stop the epidemic of false allegations.

Contact:
Ms. Velva Walter, Media Director
E-mail: velva.walter-at-ndaa.org
Telephone: 703-519-1689

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Date of RADAR Release: July 23, 2007

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R.A.D.A.R. – Respecting Accuracy in Domestic Abuse Reporting – is a non-profit, non-partisan organization of men and women
working to improve the effectiveness of our nation's approach to solving domestic violence. http://www.mediaradar.org/.