‘Sex on Trial’ paper sheds light on gender bias against women in capital murder cases

A paper published by researchers at Cornell University School of Law looks at the inequities in the way the law treats women who are on trial for capital offenses across the U.S. “Sex on Trial” shows that women’s sexuality is often used in ways that are “legally questionable and culturally regressive in order to secure punitive outcomes.” There are cases in multiple states where women’s underwear and sexual experiences that were completely unrelated to the case, sometimes taking place decades before, were used to help convict her. In 71% of the cases the researchers examined, prosecutors used sexualizing language or arguments.