Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
2009
Editor(s)
Austin Sarat
ISSN
1059-4337
Publisher
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Language
en-US
Abstract
In the 1988 film The Accused, a young woman named Sarah Tobias is gang raped on a pinball machine by three men while a crowded bar watches. The rapists cut a deal with the prosecutor. Sarah's outrage at the deal convinces the assistant district attorney to prosecute members of the crowd that cheered on and encouraged the rape. This film shows how Sarah Tobias, a woman with little means and less experience, intuits that according to the law rape victims are incredible witnesses to their own victimization. The film goes on to critique what the right kind of witness would be. This article explains how the film The Accused is therefore about the relationship between witnessing and testimony, between seeing and the representation of that which was seen. The article elaborates the relationship between the power and responsibility of being a witness in law - one who sees and credibly attests to the truth of her vision - as well as it unpacks the significance of bearing witness to film - what can we know from watching movies.
Recommended Citation
Jessica Silbey,
A Witness to Justice
,
in
46
Studies in Law, Politics, and Society
61
(Austin Sarat ed.,
2009).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/faculty_scholarship/1371
Included in
Broadcast and Video Studies Commons, Criminal Law Commons, Criminal Procedure Commons, Evidence Commons, Jurisprudence Commons, Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Commons
