* Forwarded (from: CLIB-SIGTYR) by Lazarus Long using timEd 1.01.
* Originally from Lazarus Long (350:2/100.1) to All.
* Original dated: Nov 09 '95, 01:42
                           A Modern Day Witchhunt
                                     by
                                Lazarus Long
                            lazarusl@vaxxine.com
                             November 08, 1995
One of the defense lawyers involved in the Martensville child sex abuse case 
says that an inquiry is needed to investigate why after more than 100 charges 
were laid, only two convictions were upheld.
Only one man was convicted after police and children's aid workers laid more 
than 100 charges against 9 people. The charges alleged that physical and 
sexual abuse of children occurred in the babysitting service run out of the 
home of Travis Sterling in Martensville, a town just north of Saskatoon, 
Saskatchewan.
Saskatchewan's Justice Minister has stated that "an inquiry is not needed 
because there was a trial". To me, that would make it imperative that there 
be an inquiry to establish who was ultimatley responsible for the 
indiscriminate laying of charges based on evidence that for the most part 
non-existent or compromised by "leading or suggestive" questions from the 
investigators.
As it stands now, the reputations of eight people are in ruins and there is 
ample evidence of mismanagement in both the gathering of evidence and the 
management of the case. Those doing the investigation were supposedly 
professionally trained investigators. If they were, and there is no evidence 
to suggest that they were not, then they should be held accountable for their 
role in the investigation. Whether they made the many errors due to a 
deficiency in their training or whether they were ideologically motivated 
should be made clear and appropriate action be taken. The defendants were put 
through public humiliation and have suffered not only financial expense but 
also a loss of reputation.
There is growing evidence that many child sex abuse cases consist of false 
allegations and charges are often laid on weak or nonexistent evidence. A 
curious point that emerges is that often these charges are laid against 
operators of private daycare businesses by governments officials who are 
ideologically oriented to state run daycare.
Many of the investigators of child sex abuse may be using faulty 
investigative and interviewing techniques which could lead to errors in the 
collection of evidence and the false laying of charges.
The recently published text by Stephen Ceci and Maggie Bruck brings these 
revelations.
From ""Jeopardy in the Courtroom: A Scientific Analysis of Children's 
Testimony" by Stephen J. Ceci, Ph.D., and Maggie Bruck, Ph.D.
Among their conclusions:
   * While preschool-age children are capable of providing
     forensically relevant testimony, they are more suggestible than
     older children who are, in turn, more suggestible than adults.
   * Through suggestive interviewing techniques and repeated
     questioning, children can be led to get wrong not only peripheral
     details, but the central gist of events they experienced, even
     events affecting their bodies that could have sexual
     implications.
   * There is no "Pinocchio Test" (scientifically acceptable test or
     procedure analogous to Pinocchio's nose growing longer when he
     didn't tell the truth) to determine whether allegations that
     emerge after repeated interviews using suggestive techniques are
     accurate or merely the product of the suggestive interview
     procedures.
   * Whenever possible (and as soon as possible) interviews with
     children in cases where sexual abuse is suspected should be
     electronically preserved (audio- or videotaped), ideally from the
     first interview on -- not just transcripts or notes and not just
     from the point when a child begins to disclose.
   * Although anatomically detailed dolls are seen by some therapists
     and investigators as useful tools in helping young children who
     were sexually abused describe what happened to them, the authors
     conclude:
  
     "We feel at this point that there has been sufficient concern
     raised in the literature and enough evidence of potential misuse,
     without sufficiently counterbalanced evidence to the contrary, to
     urge that dolls not be used diagnostically, at least not with
     very young children."
Continued....
Being intelligent is not a felony
But most societies evaluate it
as being at least a misdemeanour
... Parents should be licensed -Diana Hu (social dictator)
--- timEd 1.01
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