Teen boy who reported sex with woman teacher was treated like criminal, paper reports

When a 16-year-old football player accused a 25-year-old woman teacher at his St. Paul, Minn., high school of having sex with him, he was made to feel like the criminal, The Washington Post reports in an opinion piece.

The student, now 22, said his car and home were targeted by vandals and that he was constantly accused of “ruining” the teacher’s life, according to the piece.

The piece says the public’s response to the boy’s allegations is indicative of gender bias that also plays out in other areas when the alleged victim of a sex crime is a male and the suspect is a female.

 “Growing evidence shows that boys who are sexually preyed upon by older female authority figures suffer psychologically in much the same way that girls do when victimized by older men.

But in schools, courts and law offices, male victims are treated openly with a double standard, according to interviews with a dozen experts in law, psychology and social work,” the piece says.

Source: nola