More:

http://www.americablog.com/2008/09/wasilla-charged-rape-victims-for-their.html

I couldn't even believe this article, it's so creepy and out there. But in fact, Palin was mayor of Wasilla, Alaska from 1996 to 2002. And according to an Alaskan news article in the local Wasilla paper in the year 2000, the City of Wasilla, under Mayor Palin, charged rape victims for their own forensic tests. Most Alaskan municipalities picked up the tab themselves, but not Wasilla, the article notes. You see, the city of Wasilla, the article notes, didn't want to "burden" taxpayers with having to support victims of rape. Yes, they were more interested in lowering taxes. It would have cost the city between $5,000 and $14,000 a year to pay for the rape victims' police medical exams. And if the City of Wasillay, circa the year 2000, wants to go there in terms of balancing rape vs, burdening taxpayers, you should know that each and every Alaskan gets a check from the state government each year, it contains their portion of that year's oil revenues. The latest check, I read, was for over $2,000. I think the citizens of Wasilla had the money.

http://firedoglake.com/2008/09/08/norquists-bathtub/
She is grotesque.

Notr only does she want rape victims to PAY for their rape, she wants to FORCE rape/incest victims to have the baby!!!

And of course, her and McCain want to slash all the "spending" like helping single mothers.

Palin put Wasilla $21 million in debt for an ice rink but would not go another $10,000 for rape kits? Yep, somebody's skating free here.

Notr only does she want rape victims to PAY for their rape, she wants to FORCE rape/incest victims to have the baby!!!

And of course, her and McCain want to slash all the "spending" like helping single mothers.

After all, why should they have that done for free? If they're gonna be forced to carry a child to term?

Read the entire article. The Wasilla police chief says that he thinks the CRIMINALS not the victim should bear the costs of the rape kit and emergency contraceptives and so on. Its worth asking if the rapist is not caught, who would bear the costs of the test. But to say they wanted to penalize the victim is nonsense.
I don't like Palin at all. But this rush to condemn her might end up making her a martyr instead.

Isn't she forcing her 17 year old daughter to get married? For political reasons? yeah, a real winner.

Charging rape victims for these kits is right in line with the wingnut, fundamentalist mindset.

See, in wingnut world, there are no rape victims. There are "good" girls, who never get raped because they follow all the rules, and there are "bad" girls who can't be raped because they were "asking for it" and tempting the men, who simply can't be held accountable for their actions. In their minds, if a woman is raped, it's because she did something to deserve it.

Periodically, stories comes out of places with strict Islamic law of rape victims being charged with adultery, and we in the U.S. are all shocked. Yet, that kind of fundamentalist thinking is the same kind of thinking that our own extreme fundamentalist Christians have. They have a vision of the world where all the women are submissive and pure and not in charge of their own lives. Any woman who makes an accusation of rape is claiming bodily autonomy, and that just won't do.

Just to bring it full circle she also cost the City of Wasilla $1 million in legal fees because the Wasilla Sports Complex she pushed was built on land without clear title.

7 years later the owner of the land prevailed in court and was awarded $700k + legal costs.

How many rapes a year do they have in Wasilla, for god's sake? I mean, a town of 6,500? Maybe it's the long dark winters.

And from me - can we all e-mail this to every woman we know?

Yup.

Knowles signs sexual assault bill:

http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2000/05/23/news.txt

Halfway through that article are comments made by the City of Wasilla Police Chief who was hired by Palin after she fired the previous one for lack of 'loyalty'.

"Wasilla Police Chief Charlie Fannon does not agree with the new legislation, saying the law will require the city and communities to come up with more funds to cover the costs of the forensic exams.

In the past weve charged the cost of exams to the victims insurance company when possible. I just dont want to see any more burden put on the taxpayer, Fannon said.

According to Fannon, the new law will cost the Wasilla Police Department approximately $5,000 to $14,000 a year to collect evidence for sexual assault cases.

Ultimately it is the criminal who should bear the burden of the added costs, Fannon said."

So apparently the victims (or their insurance companies) are supposed to file civil suits against the attacker (if they know who it is) to recover the cost of investigating the crime they were victims of.

I live in Wasilla, and it's pretty well known that the Wasilla Police are born-again bumpkins - ironically enough most people turn to the Alaska State Troopers.