The sponsors of a bill requiring corroboration for sexual assault cases in New Hampshire have pulled their support for the proposal.
The bill would require prosecutors to present additional evidence besides the victim’s testimony in order to charge someone who has no prior convictions.
When it went in front of the House Judiciary Committee last week, the proposal received backlash from advocates, law enforcement officials, and others, who said the bill tells rape victims that they shouldn’t be believed.
The bill’s sponsors testified that these added measures would help to prevent false allegations of rape.
But in a letter addressed to committee members this week, the sponsors said after talking to dozens of people, they now understand that this issue goes “beyond the balance between protecting victims and the rights of the accused.”
Several law enforcement officials and attorneys, who testified last week, say witnesses in rape cases are extremely rare.
