The Invisible Man and His Visible Victim

SHERRY F. COLB

Cornell law professor Sherry F. Colb comments on a movie some have described as one of the best of 2020, The Invisible Man, and describes how the story in the movie offers possibilities for envisioning accountability for domestic violence and other crimes that often receive dismissive treatment under the heading of “he said/she said.” Professor Colb briefly describes the plot of the movie (including spoilers), and explains why the movie is so revelatory.

Read More

State v. Norton

Citation: 2021 UT 2

Opinion Date: January 7, 2021

Judge: Peterson

Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Supreme Court affirmed on all but one issue the judgment of the court of appeals affirming Defendant's convictions for violation of a protective order, three counts of aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping, burglary, and assault, holding that the district court erred by not instructing the jury on sexual battery as a lesser included offense of the aggravated sexual assault charge based on forcible sexual abuse. Specifically, the Supreme Court held (1) any error in the jury instructions for aggravated sexual assault and the underlying offenses of rape and forcible sexual abuse were not prejudicial; (2) the district court did not err by not instructing the jury on any of the lesser included offenses Defendant requested, except for sexual battery; and (3) at sentencing, the district court did not err in imposing a punishment of fifteen years to life for aggravated sexual assault.