A South African-born judge named Robin Camp was presiding over a 2014 rape case in a Canadian courtroom. The victim was 19 years old at the time and explained to the court that she was raped over a sink at a party. Judge Camp gave some "advice" to both the woman who was raped and the man who raped her. One of his questions to the victim was: “Why didn't you just sink your bottom down into the basin so he couldn't penetrate you?” This man had the audacity to question a rape victim about why she didn't do more to prevent herself from being raped.
Furthermore, Judge Camp asked the woman, “Why couldn't you just keep your knees together?" and claimed that if she had adjusted the position of her body, the man who raped her wouldn't have been able to do so. I believe the worst thing that a member of law enforcement can do in a rape case is blame the victim for being raped.
According to the National Research Council, 80 percent of sexual assaults go unreported. Ignorant people such as Judge Robin Camp are part of the problem. Since the Brock Turner rape case, the narrative that "we need to teach boys not to rape" has been brought to public attention, and people such as Judge Camp are shining examples as to why this narrative is incredibly wrong. The focus has to be shifted away from victim shaming and placed onto the men who rape women.
The verdict was overturned on appeal, and there will be a new trial in November. After acquitting the man who raped this young woman, the judge gave the defendant some advice: "I want you to tell your friends-- your male friends-- that they have to be far more gentle with women. They have to be far more patient. And they have to be very careful. To protect themselves, they have to be very careful." Women are the ones being raped, but men are the ones that have to "be careful," according to this vile man. I typically give people the benefit of the doubt when their words are taken out of context, but upon reading the court report, I have no doubt that Judge Camp was saying that men have to be more careful not to get caught raping women and that women that are raped wanted it.
What really confirms this in my mind is the comment Judge Camp made while addressing the general public. He said, "Young women want to have sex, particularly if they're drunk." This pathetic comment only endorses the idea that women that are under the influence of alcohol want to be raped. In another part of the trial, Judge Camp declared that "Sex and pain sometimes go together...that's not necessarily a bad thing." This man's comments are repulsive and make me both physically ill and infuriated. According to Judge Camp, “[his] colleagues knew [his] knowledge of Canadian law was very minimal. It was non-existent.” So why did he get promoted to the status of a federal judge if he has "non-existent" knowledge of the law?
Judges are supposed to be the reasonable and rational administers of justice. Judges are supposed to determine if the defendant is competent enough to understand the differences between "right" and "wrong." Thankfully, Judge Camp is being reviewed by a judiciary council and may have his judgeship removed as a result of his comments. He later apologized for his comments, but he is only sorry that people got so upset about his comments. No person of authority who blames a rape victim for what has been done to her can ever be truly apologetic. He called his comments "rude and insulting," and using such nonchalant words to describe his repulsive comments further proves that he has no remorse for what he has said.
