An off-duty police officer flashed his badge to avoid a cover charge at a Flagstaff bar and then walked behind a woman and slid his hand under her skirt and fondled her genitals.
A jury found the officer guilty of sexual abuse, which is a class 5 felony.
Robb Gary Evans was stripped of his badge.
Judge Jacqueline Hatch sentenced Evans to 2 years probation and 100 hours of community service.
He will not be required to register as a sex offender.
Before sentencing, Judge Hatch scolded the victim -
“If you wouldn’t have been there that night, none of this would have happened to you.”
“When you blame others, you give up your power to change,” Hatch said that her mother used to say.
Hatch said that the victim was not to blame in the case, but that all women must be vigilant against becoming victims. Hatch also said that even going to the grocery store after 10 p.m. can be dangerous for a woman.Victim calls for judge to apologize
Okay.
So, even though the judge is not blaming the victim, she blames the victim for being in the bar.
Men will be men and shouldn't be held responsible for their actions against women, and it is up to women to protect themselves from men.
Is that what the judge is saying?
Judge Hatch was appointed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer in June 2010.
The victim and the officer did not know each other, but they had mutual friends.
The victim's name is not being released because she is a victim of sexual assault.
The victim is asking for an apology from the judge for her statements scolding her for being at a bar.
She stated that she did not go into the bar to be sexually assaulted.
She has also stated that one of the mutual friends asked her not to press charges against the officer and that she's also been ridiculed and condemned for "ruining" Robb Evans' life.
There is a petition calling for Judge Hatch to step down.
Arizona Supreme Court : Judge Hatch should step down for unjust sex abuse case