Sexual Assault at the underwear party

As always, I've linked an article to the title.

Last week, I followed with minor interest the story of a report of a sexual assault at the Playboy mansion during their annual "Midsummers Night's Dream" party - or as I usually call it "the underwear party."

Now there is report that the investigation has been dropped and no charges will result. The article points out that the "victim" was a 22 year old woman who was unconscious due to imbibing and the "perp" was a 17 year old boy. The article quotes a spokesperson as saying that the woman recalls having intercourse and pushing away the 17 year old. But, due to lack of corroboration and in accordance with the reporter's wishes, the case will not be pursued further.

I have several questions. One, I would think that given the number of young celebs in rehab these days, that the media savvy folks at Playboy would be more aware of issues of people drinking (or using other substances) at their party to the point of being unconscious. Second, I would hope that the media savvy folks at Playboy would be more concerned about underage folks at this sort of party. It seems that there is a tremendous liability for Playboy in this situation.

Secondly, I've seen lots of victims who were unsure as to what exactly happened because of being intoxicated. It doesn't mean that no rape happened. Also, in many states, specifically taking sexual advantage of someone who is this intoxicated is against the law.

But, more to the point, I have to wonder what else is behind the case being dropped? Is this fall out from the Duke case? Will intoxicated reporters of sexual violence forever be expected to meet an unreasonable standard? Or, was the reporter in this case more concerned about not becoming an object of the runaway media? Studies show that one of the primary reasons victims do not report rape is because they fear becoming publicly known as a rape victim - and further victimized by an unsympathetic public.