According to the BBC and ABC News, a teenager from Iowa (USA) will have to pay compensation to the family of a man who raped and forced her into prostitution after killing him with 30 stab wounds. 17-year-old Pieper Lewis was ordered to pay $150,000 to the family of 37-year-old Zachary Brooks.
Investigations showed that Pieper had fled an abusive relationship with his stepmother, and while she was sleeping in the hallways of a Des Moines building, a 28-year-old man began to buy her and sell her to other men.
She claimed that one of these men was Brooks and had raped her several times in the days before the murder. He also says he was threatened with a knife by the 28-year-old into going to an apartment with Brooks, according to Pieper.
The young woman told authorities she snatched a knife from the table after another rape and stabbed Brooks in a “tantrum”. Police and prosecutors do not dispute that Pieper was raped, but have argued that the alleged rapist was asleep when he was stabbed and did not pose an immediate danger to him.
Last year, he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and willful injury in the June 2020 murder of Pieper Brooks, which could have sentenced him to 10 years in prison.
Polk County District Judge David Porter has suspended his prison sentences, but if he violates any part of his parole, he will be sentenced to 20 years in prison.
As for the substantial fine, the judge expressed regret and said the court “had no choice” due to state law. In addition, Iowa does not provide at least a certain level of criminal immunity to victims of trafficking, as other states do.
Pieper said in a statement that he was a “survivor” at his trial. “My soul was burned, but it still shines through the flames. Hear me roar, see me shine and grow. I am a survivor.”
Prosecutors objected to her characterizing herself as a “victim”, saying she, in her own words, did not take responsibility for the murder and “left her children without a father”. As the juvenile detention period is over, the judge also expressed her concern that she was not following the established rules. “This is the second chance you want. You won’t get a third.”
Pieper admits to committing the crime, but defends his actions. “I took a person’s life. That day my intention was not just to go out and take someone’s life. In my mind, I felt unsafe and in danger, which resulted in actions. But that doesn’t take away the fact that a crime was committed”.
source: Noticias
