Defending rapists isn’t immoral

This article first appeared on DUSA Media.

In a long piece over at the University of Birmingham’s “Redbrick”, Laura Brindley describes this theoretical scenario:

A fourteen year old girl has been violently gang raped by five men, in littered woods, just ten minutes away from where the girl lives in her council flat with her single mother and four siblings. On a humid summer night, a girl drunk with cheap vodka the men had bought her loses her childhood … [T]he girl has a “bad girl” reputation in school.

The defense uses the girl’s reputation against her in court, and her rapists go free.

In her headline, Laura asks whether you can morally defend a rapist. She argues that defense lawyers “who know deep down that their client is guilty of rape (whether the client had said the words out loud or not)” should “put forward the truth whether it loses them their case or not.” I think it’s the wrong question to ask, and the way she goes about answering it misunderstands both the job of the justice system and role of the various parties in it.

In Laura’s scenario, there’s no question that the girl was raped. In real life, however, this case would start with a claim by a girl, and whether or not her story is true needs to be investigated. When Philip Rumney reviewed studies on the subject in 2006, he found that false reporting rate estimates ranged from 1.5 percent to 90 percent (ungated copy here). Recent estimates tend to be on the lower end. A March 2013 report by the Crown Prosecution Service, for example, said that between January 2011 and May 2012, there were 5,651 prosecutions for rape in England and Wales, compared to 35 prosecutions for making false allegations to that effect. (That number doesn’t include withdrawn allegations.)

Let’s be clear: False rape allegations are rare. But that doesn’t mean that the number of allegations automatically equals the number of crimes. (Unfortunately, that’s true both ways: Too many rapes aren’t reported because many victim are too afraid or too ashamed.) And given that it’s almost impossible to navigate the spider web of laws and precedents without expert help, defendants only have a chance to prove their innocence with the help of a lawyer.

In a trial, there are three parties, and each has a distinct role. Put simply, the prosecution assumes the very worst about the defendant and presents the evidence that backs up its case. The defense assumes the very worst about the victim and presents the evidence that backs up its case (or plays devil’s advocate and attempts to weaken the prosecution’s version of events). Judges and juries look at the evidence and have to figure out which side’s version is closer to the truth. This process often results in verdicts that the public finds frustrating or disappointing.

An emotional response to some verdicts isn’t a good reason to abandon a pretty well tested system, though. Each side deserves to be heard and has the right to question the other side’s version of events. Again, only in the scenario can we know for sure that the rape happened; in real life, we’d probably have two conflicting versions of what happened, and at least initially no way of knowing for sure which one is true.

Laura’s alternative would seriously undermine that balance. Let me quote her again, because I don’t want to mischaracterize her position (emphasis mine):

The problem are defence lawyers who know deep down that their client is guilty of rape (whether the client had said the words out loud or not) … We need more defence lawyers who are prepared to find out the real story from their client and put forward the truth whether it loses them their case or not.

According to Laura, it doesn’t require the defendant’s admission for the defense to effectively switch sides. I assume that by “deep down”, Laura actually means “after careful examination of the available evidence;” everything else would be fairly indefensible. But every trial already has a party whose job it is to weigh the evidence and attempt to reach a verdict informed by the facts: judges and juries. They determine whose version is more credible after both sides get to question each other’s stories, but for that they need to hear both sides. They’d only get to hear one if defense lawyers followed Laura’s suggestion.

There certainly are defense teams who aggressively portray their opponents as unreliable. But experience tells us that in Laura’s scenario, the prosecution would probably try the same. What if one of the alleged rapists had been accused of domestic violence by an angry ex-wife in the past, even if the case was dismissed? Or another had been a former alcoholic who had been unemployed for years and was suffering from depression as a result? It doesn’t take much imagination to see these circumstances being brought up by the prosecution (or being leaked to willing “journalists” eager for a “scoop”). It’s a dirty game both sides routinely play, and the effects probably cancel each other out.

The question is not whether it’s immoral to defend a rapist, but for the record, it’s not. In our judicial system, loyal and competent defense lawyers are a prerequisite for a fair trial. In dubio pro reo and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty are two pillars of the rule of law. Both put the burden on the prosecution, and for good reasons. In some cases, that may result in an acquittal because there isn’t enough evidence for the prosecution to prove their case.

On a personal level, that may be tragic. But for a society, having some who are guilty go free is a smaller price to pay than putting many who are innocent behind bars.

Lots of fire alarms, but few fires in Dundee halls

This article first appeared on DUSA Media.

For halls residents, fire alarms are a near daily occurrence. But when firefighters show up, they rarely find a fire.

A group of people, some of them still in their PJs, standing outside in the rain, while a beeping sound cuts through the silence… If you’ve ever lived in one of Dundee University’s residences, you know what that means: A fire alarm went off somewhere in the building. It has become something of an initiation ritual for students living in halls, and talking about it is a sure-fire way to start a conversation that everyone on campus can join.

According to numbers obtained from Tayside Fire and Rescue through a Freedom of Information request, fire alarms in student accommodation in Dundee went off 546 times between 1 April 2011 and 5 February 2013.

Dundee University fire alarms

Take a guess: How often did firefighters have to deal with, you know, actual fires?

If you came up with an estimate in the double digits or more, you’re way off. The fire brigade extinguished flames exactly nine times in almost two years. Apparently, kitchens are a particularly dangerous place. Three “pots of meat”, a frying pan on a hob, two towels and two paper bins caused fires. There also was an unspecified incident in a kitchen.

More than 98 percent of fire alarms that went off in student accommodation did so for other reasons. The main causes, a spokeswoman for Tayside Fire and Rescue dryly notes, included “cooking, deodorant spray, straighteners, candles, showers, etc.” A West Park resident tells a story that will be familiar to many: “Following a night that involved drinking out of a shoe, several air-soft gun rampages and much profuse vomiting, some pillock decided it would be a good idea to set off our fire extinguisher. Aside from suffocating the entire population of our hallway, it rather ironically also set off the fire alarm.”

Residents in Dundee University’s halls are particularly likely to set off fire alarms for no (fire-related) reason. The highest number of alarms – 119 – came from Heathfield. The leader in actual fires, however, is Seabraes: Out of 76 alarms, three incidents there required firefighters.

It probably will not surprise you that anecdotal evidence suggests alcohol often plays a role in fire alarms, like in this story told by a former Belmont resident: “When we came back from Skint, my flatmate tried to make chips. A huge gust of smoke came out when she opened the oven, and the fire alarm went off. The fire brigade discovered that someone had tried to cook a shoe in our oven. Our entire flat was deemed toxic because of the fumes from the plastic.” (The incident took place in 2010 and isn’t included in the figures above.)

How do other student residences in the city stack up? Well, it isn’t even close. Over 22 months, fire alarms went off in The Hub just four times, and not once in The Opal, according to Tayside Fire and Rescue.

Asked whether students are too careless when it comes to setting off fire alarms, Tayside Fire and Rescue preferred to “not give an opinion.”

In all fairness, the numbers probably speak for themselves.

Dundee University’s halls are the most expensive in Scotland

This article first appeared on DUSA Media.

Students living in university accommodation at the University of Dundee pay significantly more than their peers anywhere else in Scotland. DUSA’s president says it’s time for a rent freeze.

About 1,500 students live in one of the University’s four halls. Two residences, Belmont and Heathfield, are located on campus, and a third one, Seabraes, is a five-minute walk from the University. For 2013-14, students living there will be paying £4,865 per year. Rents are lower for residents of West Park, where rooms cost almost £4,200 – at the price of being two kilometres (1.2 miles) away from The Union and other campus facilities. These rates get tenants an en-suite single bedroom with about 13 square metres. Two more square metres will set them back an additional £140 per year.

Scottish-universities-accommodation-prices No other University in Scotland charges more than Dundee for a self-catered single room. Rents in University residences in Edinburgh and Glasgow are significantly lower, despite higher average rents for one-bedroom properties in both cities. Even in “posh” St. Andrews, students who are fine with walking 15 minutes to the city centre can live in much more affordable accommodation.

Rents in Dundee University’s halls have risen dramatically since 2009. In 2009-10, hall residents paid about £4,100 for a standard room. Three years later, annual rents have gone up by £750, an increase of more than 18 percent.

In the same time period, monthly prices for other one-bedroom properties in Dundee have remained virtually unchanged, according to Rentright, a company that provides information on average prices of rental properties. Across all types of leased housing in Dundee, prices have fallen in the three years since September 2009.

The Residences Office claims that student accommodation at the University of Dundee was in a pitiful state before 2004. “In order to bring it up to modern standards expected of our students and of legislation, over £40 million was borrowed and invested through a joint partnership agreement” with Sanctuary Housing Association and the Bank of Scotland. Annual rent increases are negotiated and agreed to by the University under a process in which DUSA, the student association that also publishes this magazine, is consulted – or so the Residences Office claims.The University of Dundee’s Residences Office cautions against comparing rents among Scottish universities because of varying lease lengths and facility standards. There’s indeed one major difference: In Dundee’s halls, every room comes with an en-suite bathroom and shower, whereas most other Scottish students pay extra for these conveniences. Leases for undergraduate students, however, generally last around 39 weeks to cover the academic year. Other differences are marginal.

That’s an “inaccurate statement,” says Iain Kennedy, DUSA’s president. “A DUSA [representative] sits on a liaison committee, alongside staff from the University and Sanctuary Management, however this group does not have any control over financial issues.” Kennedy also said that DUSA has expressed concerns over rent increases in the past, but to no avail, because of the partnership agreement’s “financial process which ensures that the rent increases every year.”

Dundee-university-accommodation-rent-increases

The joint venture has been a double-edged sword for the University. In April 2007, some members of the University’s administrative governing body, the University Court, “felt that the current prices were uncompetitive,” according to meeting minutes. They urged the joint venture “to be cautious in setting prices [and] consider more innovative marketing ideas.”

A 2008 study by the University and Colleges Union (UCU) found that the University had incurred massive losses from the partnership. “Halls in the new student [residences] remain empty while the venture made losses of £500,000 [in 2007] and a staggering £1.3 million [in 2008]. The University’s share of this is £400,000 and the proportion appears to be rising,” according to the study. UNISON, a public sector trade union, noted in a PowerPoint presentation that the “University has had to provide funding to the company from its own revenues.”

Things have changed, apparently. The Residences Office claims that the occupation rate in halls now is “around 99 percent.” According to court minutes for April 2011, that is higher than projected. Yet the minutes also record that “for 2011-12, residence fees would be increased by 5.54 percent.” In other words, the residences are making more money than expected, but rents keep rising.

Living on campus has an obvious appeal, particularly for first-year students. “It’s convenient, first years have a guaranteed place, and it’s a great environment to meet new people,” says David, a Heathfield resident who started university last September. I asked him whether he felt that en-suite bathrooms and showers were necessary, given that most students share these facilities with flatmates once they move into private accommodation. He paused for a moment before saying, “well, it’s too expensive for my liking – but I guess it’s a nice little luxury.”

That little luxury comes with a price tag that exceeds many student loans. The maximum amount paid out by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) currently is £5,570, but most students get much less. The average loan paid out by SAAS in 2011-12, the most recent year for which data is available, was £4,256 – more than £200 short of the rent in campus residences at the time.

Kennedy thinks it’s time for a rent freeze. “I believe we are now getting to a point where further rent increases are unsustainable. It’s my hope that the University, in conjunction with other partners in the [joint venture], will seek a review of the terms which determine annual rent increases.”

That’s unlikely to happen. The University cites a Residences Office survey in which nine out of ten first-year residents said that they “would recommend living in university residences to prospective first year students.” The University also points to the results of the most recent Times Higher Education Experience Survey which found that most Scottish students are less satisfied with their university accommodation than their peers in the rest of Britain. (North of the border, students at the University of West Scotland were unhappiest: UWS placed 106 out of 107 in the accommodation ranking.) The Residences Office proudly notes that in the study, “Dundee University was voted joint second for ‘Good Accommodation’ in the UK.”

But at almost five grand a year, there’s no reason why students should settle for anything less.

Why is the WiFi in the library so slow?

This post first appeared on DUSA Media.

One thing many students definitely remember from revising in the library is their browser’s error page.

WiFi connections in the library have either been non-existent or frustratingly slow for months now. Surprisingly, the University’s Information and Communication Services (ICS) directorate wasn’t aware that there was a problem in the first place until mid-March. In an email statement, ICS assistant director Ellen Keir said that “prior to that we had nothing significant reported either directly to Service Desk in the library or through our online tool for reporting issues, Help4U.”

The problem, according to Keir, was that bandwidth use in the library was well within acceptable limits – but the number of connections exceeded capacity. Attempts to fix the issue during the Easter break were prevented by delays in getting parts from a supplier. Remedial work has been completed since and ICS says this should have solved the problem.

On top of that, says Keir, ICS became aware of a separate capacity issue on the library’s ground floor, caused in part by additional study spaces set up during the exam period. ICS testing shows that Internet access there seems to work fine now.

Keir encouraged students to report any problems with Internet access on campus to the Service Desk in the library or online. “Our systems monitoring can only do so much and is often focused on availability,” she said. Last time, ICS became only aware of problems with WiFi access when Keir attended a Student Representative Council (SRC) meeting in March, after which the department started investigating the issues. Says Keir, “without feedback from students we may be unaware of their difficulties.”

Still having problems with WiFi in the library? Let us know in the comments and report them to Help4U.

From Communist to democratic leader: Milan Kučan

This article first appeared on the “Let’s feel Slovenia” blog.

Most political revolutions produce their own heroes, from Poland’s Lech Wałęsa to the Czech “poet president” Václav Havel. In this exclusive group, few have travelled further ideologically than Slovenia’s Milan Kučan. Once a high-ranking Communist, he led his country into independence after having become its first democratically elected president. A political realist, on the eve of Slovenian independence he declared that “tonight, dreams are allowed,” only to quickly note that “tomorrow is a new day” on which the work of building a new nation would begin in earnest.

Before Yugoslavia fell apart in the early 1990s amongst war and genocide, the soft-spoken Kučan led a relatively conformist life. Born in 1941 in the small town of Križevci, he quickly rose through the ranks of the Communist Party. He became speaker of the Slovenian Assembly and the state’s representative to the central party leadership in Belgrade from 1982 to 1986. After his return to his native Slovenia, the changes affecting Yugoslavia during the 1980’s after Tito’s death changed Kučan’s political outlook dramatically.

While Serbia continued to refuse democratic reforms in Yugoslavia, Kučan not only oversaw the creation of small businesses but also allowed the formation of an unofficial opposition in his one-party republic. As early as 1988, when Serbia’s Slobodan Miloševic used nationalism as a political tool to foster his own political ambitions, Time magazine noted that Kučan called Serbia out for “deliberately fanning nationalist passions.”

In mid-1991, Slovenia joined Croatia and threatened to break away if Serbia did not agree to a federation of sovereign states. By that point, Slovenia had already held its first multiparty elections in which Kučan won as the Communist candidate for president despite his party’s trouncing in the parliamentary elections. He was one of the first and certainly the most respected of Slovenia’s leaders to call for independence, responding to international critics that Yugoslavia was already falling apart anyways: “Whenever foreign partners try to convince me that I should stay within Yugoslavia, I offer them the opportunity to trade places with us.”

After a referendum in which almost nine out of then Slovenes opted for cutting ties with Belgrade, it fell to Kučan to steer Slovenia to independence and gain recognition for the new country. His task was complicated by a raging Serbia which vowed to militarily prevent Yugoslavia from falling apart.

It was Milan Kučan’s speech on the eve of independence that came to define his country’s way to independence. He did not just address his fellow countrymen, rightly warning them of tough times ahead (while Slovenia was not at the center of the Balkans wars during the 1990’s, it was still affected). In a speech remarkable for its eloquence, he also called for the support of Slovenia’s independence by the rest of the world.

In a surprising act of leadership, and largely as a result of Kučan’s careful and moderate leadership, Germany was one of the first countries to formally recognize Slovenia. Miloševic understood Kučan’s importance in the collapse of Yugoslavia, and remained bitter about the role his former comrade played. When he finally faced justice at the criminal court in The Hague in 2003, the former Serbian president told Kučan in an almost comical distortion of reality, “You opted for violence, you personally played the decisive role.”

Kučan stepped down in 2002, having easily been reelected five years earlier when he ran as an independent. Now a well-respected elder statesman, he remains both popular and active in Slovenian politics (as opposed to, say, the now largely unpopular Wałęsa). For a long time, he and his country remained a calm rarity among the often heated political upheavals in Central Europe. Milan Kučan will rightly be remembered as the man who led his country into independence when the circumstances were right and Slovenians ready to take the risk.