Without Consent: A Landmark Trial and the Decades-Long Struggle to Make Spousal Rape a Crime by Sarah Weinman
TW: sexual assault, domestic violence, and abuse. It wasn't until 1978 that a wife accused her husband of rape in a courtroom in the United States. Greta Rideout had endured physical and sexual violence from her husband, John Rideout. Sometimes she stopped fighting him because of his threats to their young daughter. But after meeting with a counselor, she contextualized part of his abuse as rape--a crime she hadn't previously conceived a husband could commit against his wife. But despite Greta's testimony, John was acquitted. And, instead, it was Greta the media and public found guilty with one escalation leading to someone attacking her. It would be much longer after the trial that it would be legally determined a spouse could have raped their spouse. It was not until 1993 that marital rape was a crime in every state. Yet, even today, some states have exceptions or narrow definitions regarding the crime. This was a horrifying realization I had while reading Without Consen...
