Arizona Judge Lambasts Victim in Groping Case

Arizona judge, Jacqueline Hatch, sentenced officer, Robb Gary Evans, to probation after jurors found him guilty of sexual abuse.  Apparently, Evans was drinking at a bar in Flagstaff and reached up a woman’s skirt and groped her genitals.

While the punishment doesn’t seem to fit the crime, the story didn’t end here.   Judge Hatch was far from sympathetic to the victim’s plight, stating to her, “If you wouldn’t have been there that night, none of this would have happened to you” and that “even going to the grocery store after 10 p.m. can be dangerous for women.”  The judge even went on to quote her own mother, saying, “When you blame others, you give up your power to change.”

One would think a female judge would be more compassionate. Women do not need to be told that they should be scared to go out of their house and into the grocery store after 10pm. The victim in this situation is just that, a victim.  She did nothing wrong, a wrong was committed against her.  There is no place for such ridiculous dicta in a case like this.

The judge later apologized for her statement and claims to have learned an important lesson from all this.

Do you think Judge Hatch should resign as has been called for?  Can you imagine if a male judge opined similarly?