"The Horrible Outrage of a Woman at Dudley"
On Saturday, July 1, 1871, The Illustrated Police News published an article titled "The Horrible Outrage of a Woman at Dudley." This article takes up less than half of one column on one page of the news, and does not have an illustration connected with it. Within the article, it is reported that a married woman, Mrs. Turner, was brutally raped and robbed back in May of 1870. She was asleep in her home when 21-year-old William Rowley broke in, along with two others, Cox and Williams. Mrs. Turner attempted to defend herself by hitting two of the robbers with an axe from the fireplace, but this only led to more force from the men. Once the men were inside her home, she continued to try and fight, but they took turns holding her down and even carrying her out into the field outside her home. Once brought back inside, the man Cox recognized she was tired from fighting, and gave her some cold tea to refresh her before taking turns brutally raping her along with Williams. They then threatened her with a knife in order to rob her of her hidden money.
The fact that this crime was officially classified to be a rape is important in the development of how sexual assault and rape were viewed in this time period. Because rape was hard to prove, especially if the man accused denied it, many times the crime went without conviction. This case, however, had an eyewitness, as well as involved a burglary, which was less of a taboo crime. It is interesting to see that this case took over a year to be published in the paper, despite the victim reporting it to the police an hour later and following up with a visit to the station the next morning. This could possibly mean it was not handled, nor were the assailants accused for many months, which is interesting considering the violent nature of the crime. Was this a common occurrence among all crimes, or just in particular for sexual crimes against women? Why does the title claim this is a "horrible outrage" if the news did not find it significant enough to place in a section of the paper that would be easier to read and find?
It is also interesting to see that this crime was given no special attention or recognition, such as a longer article or an illustration. This shows either its insignificance due to commonality, or its attempt at hiding the fact that this crime happened at all. Perhaps the crime was not seen as heinous as it would be together, because, after all, the rapists did freshen her up with some cold tea and allow her to rest before brutally forcing themselves on her and threatening to kill her with a knife.
The fact that this crime was officially classified to be a rape is important in the development of how sexual assault and rape were viewed in this time period. Because rape was hard to prove, especially if the man accused denied it, many times the crime went without conviction. This case, however, had an eyewitness, as well as involved a burglary, which was less of a taboo crime. It is interesting to see that this case took over a year to be published in the paper, despite the victim reporting it to the police an hour later and following up with a visit to the station the next morning. This could possibly mean it was not handled, nor were the assailants accused for many months, which is interesting considering the violent nature of the crime. Was this a common occurrence among all crimes, or just in particular for sexual crimes against women? Why does the title claim this is a "horrible outrage" if the news did not find it significant enough to place in a section of the paper that would be easier to read and find?
It is also interesting to see that this crime was given no special attention or recognition, such as a longer article or an illustration. This shows either its insignificance due to commonality, or its attempt at hiding the fact that this crime happened at all. Perhaps the crime was not seen as heinous as it would be together, because, after all, the rapists did freshen her up with some cold tea and allow her to rest before brutally forcing themselves on her and threatening to kill her with a knife.
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