BishopAccountability.org

NH bill seeks to change sexual assault standard

By Brian Early
Seacoast Online
January 17, 2017

http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/20170116/nh-bill-seeks-to-change-sexual-assault-standard

[with video]

CONCORD -The state's House Committee on Justice and Public Safety will hold a hearing on Tuesday on a bill that would require corroboration to a victim's testimony in sexual assault cases where the defendant has no prior convictions.

The bill has generated intense interest, especially for advocates of sexual assault victims, and the hearings are expected to be widely attended.

Rep. William Marsh, a Wolfeboro Republican, introduced House Bill 106 that adds 13 words and strikes out four others to the law dealing with sexual assault and related offenses. The proposed law states that "the testimony of the victim (in sexual assault cases) shall be corroborated in prosecutions ...; only in cases where the defendant has no prior convictions." The bill was co-sponsored by two others; however, one has since withdrawn her support.

Marsh said the scales of justice seem to be in favor of the victim. "We're guilty as soon as we're accused at this point in time, and that's a problem," Marsh said in a call on Monday. One reason for introduction was the 2016 conviction of Concord psychologist Foad Afshar of aggravated felonious sexual assault. A jury found Afshar, whose license had lapsed, guilty of touching the genitals of a 12 year old during an appointment, and he is now serving a 3- to 6-year prison sentence. Afshar is appealing the case.

A website devoted to the case, justiceforfoad.com, states that Afshar has been unjustly convicted with little evidence other than the victim, pointing to his career working with children and the fact no other victims came forward during the publicized trial. Marsh said that without changes to the law, more psychologists and psychiatrists would not take on troubled youths for fear of being accused of a crime.

The concern for mental health workers working with troubled youth is one reason why Rep. Mary Heath, a Manchester Democrat, initially signed on. (She has since withdrawn her support and sent a letter to the committee testifying against it.) Heath worked in education for her career and has spoken to many school psychologists and psychiatrists. "Some children have been so abused that they are willing to say things that are untrue," she said.

But the bill as written is not the answer. "We need to find a way to protect our mental health workers that work with the most troubled children. I'm not sure how to do that," she said. On the other side, "We need to make sure that if a child says something, there has to be an avenue to be believed if it is true."

Rep. Jess Edwards, an Auburn Republican, also co-sponsored Marsh's bill and remains in support of the bill, but said his support is not related to Afshar's case in any way. Retired, Edwards said he sought to become a Big Brother but was warned against it by a good friend who was a clinical psychologist. "He said, 'Don't do it. One accusation and everything you've worked 40 years for could be destroyed,'" Edwards said.

Edwards said he became one anyways. But he worries that other retirees who want to give back to their community would opt not to work with troubled and challenging children for fear of being wrongly accused. In his written testimony he submitted, Edwards stated, "The social cost of discouraging adults from engaging youth populations is extremely high. Adult leadership and mentorship is essential to guiding children through their formative years."

Amanda Grady Sexton, the public affairs director for the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, said HB 106 is "the most dangerous sexual assault legislation in the 16 years I've been doing this," she said.

Sexton said she has not seen any evidence of a shortage of mentors who have stopped helping for fear of being wrongly accused. If there is such a fear, organizations should look at their policies to address this issue. As for the Afshar's case, "I'm alarmed and disheartened that these cases are being used to bring about any sort of changes to the sexual assault law," she said.

The corroborating evidence, Sexton argues, would need to have either DNA evidence or an eyewitness to the assault. "Most people agree that most sexual assaults happen behind closed doors," she said. DNA is also difficult to come by. Some reporting of sexual assault would come years later when there would not be any DNA evidence available. In other cases of rape, victims often shower before meeting with an investigator, likely removing any potential DNA evidence.

Marsh and Edwards disagree, stating that corroborating evidence is a much lower standard and has many more options than DNA and eyewitness accounts. Sexton says she's heard the same about corroborating evidence in relation to this case, "but they have given no examples of corroborating evidence."

Marsh said New York lawyer Laurie Shank, who has studied this issue, will be on hand to testify to give examples of what corroborating evidence can be. It's unclear how many people will speak for the bill, but Sexton listed a litany of organizations who will speak against the bill, including the County Attorney's Association, the New Hampshire Psychologist Association, The N.H. Chiefs of Police and schedule permitting, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire.

The meeting is scheduled to be in room 204 of the legislative office building at the State House at 10 a.m.

Contact: bearly@seacoastonline.com




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