The Derrick Rose rape case has become on of the biggest topics in sports recently. The outcome of the case that has gang rape at its forefront will come down solely to consent.
According to FOX News Latino, the New York Knicks star took the stand to defend himself in the lawsuit claiming that he and two friends raped an ex-girlfriend while she was intoxicated. The star was asked if he understood consent and we are now learning that it may be the deciding factor in the case.
"No. But can you tell me?" he asked at a deposition in June.
Although the case has been in trial for some time and Rose has a better understanding of the word consent, his interpretation may work against hi,.
The site reports that no one disputes Rose and his childhood friends had sex with the woman in her apartment late August. The burning question is if she consented. The men claim she consented whereas the ex-girlfriend claims she was to incapacitated to do so.
While there is no commonly accepted definition for consent, which is at the heart of a "patchwork quilt" of evolving laws on rape and sexual assault that in some cases require an affirmative agreement before sex, attorney Rebecca O'Conner said.
"It is murky and I think that's where we're seeing a lot states try to clear the weeds, if you will, and take this on and make it clear," said O'Connor, a vice president at the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. "It's so complicated we can never just say it's black and white."
In general, the definition of rape is defined as intercourse with force against a peson's will. The argument that many people are holding on to is that how can a woman consent to sexual intercourse while under the influence?
Rape was once defined as intercourse with force against a woman's will, said Matt Lyon, a law professor at Lincoln Memorial University. Reform efforts in some states led to rape being defined more by the non-consent of the victim than a use of force by the perpetrator. States such as California have gone steps further in deciding consent can be withdrawn during sex and that a victim can be too incapacitated to agree to the act.
"One of the big criticisms against the modernization is the 'he said, she said,'" Lyon said. "It's so easy when it's clear there was force used, but here the woman may say it was rape though there's no physical evidence of force or that it was done against her will."
Although Rose's understanding of the word consent was calle dinto question during his videotaped deposition, at a later period in trial he tried to recover by defining it as both parties being in agreement. he also claims that the ex-girlfriend's racy text messages more proved his argument that the intercourse was not rape.
The topic of consent is a big one in the media today as many entertainers and celebrities have been in legal trouble stemming from the consensual sex argument. The trial is still underway but the way that the case is going, the outcome can swing any way.
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