Tag Archives: Matthew Knight

Sexual Predators Often Avoid Prosecution

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by Kirsten May
Courtesy of A-State Department of Media

Out of every 1,000 rapes, very few ever lead to a conviction. That is partly because less than 350 are reported, leading to an average of 63 arrests, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. Of those, only 20 percent of cases are referred to a prosecutor. ASU TV’s Kirsten May spoke with a prosecuting attorney to find out why those numbers are so low.

JONESBORO, Ark. — When a victim of sexual assault comes forward, they face many questions. If an arrest is made, the victim must decide with law enforcement if they want to press charges.

The prosecuting attorney for the second judicial district of Arkansas, Scott Ellington said that is not always a straightforward process.

“When it is a forcible rape where there is an unknown perpetrator, those are easier to prosecute. Because it’s a foreign situation,” he said.

Ellington said things can get more complicated when it is assault by a friend or acquaintance.

“Where is the level of consent? That is the primary issue is where is the level of consent. And those issues are looked at closely,” the prosecuting attorney said.

He said victims can decide not to press charges for various reasons, including the fear of going public with such a private violation.

“We do have cases where victims decide they would prefer not to prosecute, and understandably so, because generally they make a report and they maintain pretty much anonymity,” Ellington said.

A licensed professional counselor in administration at Mid-South Health Systems, Matthew Knight said some victims just cannot stand to keep retelling their story to lawyers, judges and jurors because they are just trying to move forward in their life.

“‘And I don’t think I want to go through the public part of this again, I will just heal with myself,'” he said victims tell themselves.

But Knight said, in his experience, those victims often get stronger and decide they do want to tell somebody.

“They don’t want that person who has been the perpetrator to continue to do that with other people,” he said.

Whether or not a person decides to follow through with charges, Ellington said there is one important thing to do as soon as you discover the assault.

“Collect the evidence, collect anything that might have DNA on it,” he said.

Ellington said time is very important because if a victim changes their mind a few days later, that evidence might already be gone.

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Ellington also said he understand victims are often scared or nervous while going through the prosecution process, so his office does have a designated victim-witness coordinator who visits with victims and helps them through the process.

Learn more about how the system helps sexual assault victims in this previous installment.

System Helps Sexual Assault Victims

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by Kirsten May
Courtesy of A-State Department of Media

A person is sexually assaulted every two minutes in the United States, which means an average of 288,820 victims face rape or sexual assault. A sexual assault occurred on Arkansas State’s main campus earlier this month. ASU TV News’s Kirsten May investigates how a sexual assault affects mental health.

JONESBORO, Ark. — Many sexual assault victims first end up in an emergency room where Dr. Brandon Lane works.

“First, as a physician, we will assess the patient from a physical standpoint to make sure they have no injuries,” Lane said.

Then, as long as the patient consents, St. Bernards Regional Medical Center Emergency Room doctors will begin the process of collecting evidence that could be used in a later criminal case.

“And then we will go ahead and take that evidence to the appropriate law enforcement agency,” Lane said. “If the patient wants us to, not by law. If the patient is agreeable to that. That’s the sticky point sometimes that we see here in the emergency room.”

Although doctors cannot always give evidence to police though Lane said they often want to, physicians can ensure the patient gets any other help he or she might need, like a referral to a therapist.

“Especially if the patient is by him or herself, so that we can get them to be supported early on in their care,” he said. “I think the main thing is to know that they are supported.”

Matthew Knight is a licensed professional counselor who is now in administration at Midsouth Health Systems. He said conveying “someone is there” is the most important thing to do for any trauma victim.

“That someone believes their story. That someone is in a sense in their corner or at least is listening to what they have to say,” he said.

Knight said for many victims, there are thoughts of guilt and self-doubt about what they could have done differently. He wants them to know this assault is not their fault and they don’t have to try and heal by themselves.

“There are probably a lot of woman who deal with this alone, who never told anybody else and just went home,” Knight said. “So I think that there are probably woman who this becomes their secret and secrets have so much power, particularly secrets that are kept about trauma.”

Knight said another difficult thing for victims to do is decide whether or not they want to press charges against the perpetrator.

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How difficult is it to prosecute sexual assault cases? Prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington speaks with Kirsten May next week on ASU TV News.