Facing scrutiny in, out of the courtroom

Deepa Bharath

On Thursday, the 18-year-old girl known to the world only as “Jane

Doe” did something she hadn’t done through several hours of grilling

questions.

She cracked.

Tears came rolling down her face as she saw a video of herself

sitting on a couch with two boys, who now stand accused of

gang-raping her as she was unconscious.

Prosecutors say Greg Haidl, son of Orange County Assistant Sheriff

Don Haidl, Kyle Nachreiner and Keith Spann raped the girl and

sexually assaulted her with various objects as she lay passed out on

a pool table in the Haidls’ garage. She was 16 years old at the time.

The girl began her testimony on May 18, about two weeks into the

trial. For the most part, she was unflappable. She answered questions

such as: “Did you lie to your parents?” and “Do you like sex?” with a

simple “yes” or “no.”

The only time she even got choked up before Thursday was when

prosecutor Dan Hess asked her to identify the three defendants by

their names.

It’s this type of scrutiny that discourages rape victims from

taking the stand or even going forward with a case, said Heather

Banuelos, program director for Sexual Assault Victims Services, which

also serves as Orange County’s rape crisis center.

“One can only imagine the embarrassment and fear that a woman

feels when confronting the perpetrators,” she said. “It’s harder when

the defense is attacking the victim for past experiences, which have

very little do with the charges against the defendants.”

That is the reason why so few of these cases even go to trial,

Banuelos added.

Victim advocates, who also work from the district attorney’s

office in Santa Ana, help out alleged victims and their families, she

said.

“Advocates are trained to take them through the system,” she said.

“They take them on a court tour and also familiarize them with the

criminal justice system.”

It also doesn’t help that society is not too kind to rape victims,

Banuelos said.

“We have a long way to go in understanding that it is not the

victim’s fault,” she said. “That’s why many rapes go unreported. Part

of our job is also to educate the community so that they don’t pass

judgment or ever blame these victims, but encourage them to report

these crimes and help start their healing process.”

If taking the stand is tough for the victim, it’s challenging for

the defense, attorneys representing two of the defendants in the

gang-rape case said.

“It’s a balancing act,” said Spann’s attorney, Pete Morreale. “You

have to handle it forcefully, but at the same time, you can’t risk

alienating the jury.”

Morreale, who is expected to begin cross-examining the girl today,

said his style will be different from that of Haidl’s attorney,

Joseph Cavallo.

“I will be handling it very delicately,” he said.

Morreale said this case is no different from any other rape case

he has taken on.

“The only thing different about this one is the publicity it has

generated,” he said. “We’ve got mass mailings of women’s groups

saying terrible things about the defense. But all we’re doing is our

job, which is to defend our clients.”

Cavallo, who was admonished by the judge last week for implying in

front of jurors that the district attorney had coached the witness,

said he hasn’t been “overly aggressive” with the girl.

“I try to tread lightly because otherwise I can give the

appearance of being antagonistic,” he said. “It’s hard for me because

of the jury’s perception of her as a potential victim.”

Deputy Dist. Atty Susan Schroeder said it took remarkable courage

for the girl to not only come forward and testify but talk about her

sex life in front of a courtroom full of strangers.

“She didn’t come to us,” she said. “We tracked her down.”

In the beginning, the girl did not want to believe it was her on

the video, Schroeder said.

“It’s extremely difficult for anyone to do what this girl has been

doing over the last few days,” she said.

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.