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166 U. Pa. L. Rev. 1 (2017-2018)
Incredible Women: Sexual Violence and the Credibility Discount

handle is hein.journals/pnlr166 and id is 5 raw text is: UNIVERSITY of PENNSYLVANIA LAW REVIEW Founded 1852 Formerly AMERICAN LAW REGISTER © 2017 University of Pennsylvania Law Review VOL. 166 DECEMBER 2017 NO. 1 ARTICLE INCREDIBLE WOMEN: SEXUAL VIOLENCE AND THE CREDIBILITY DISCOUNT DEBORAH TUERKHEIMERt Credibility is central to the legal treatment of sexual violence, as epitomized by the iconic he said/she said contest. Over time, the resolution of competing factual accounts has evidenced a deeply skeptical orientation toward rape accusers. This incredulous stance remains firmly lodged, having migrated from formal legal rules to informal practices, with much the same result-an enduring system of disbelief Introducing the concept of credibility discounting helps to explain the dominant feature of our legal response to rape. Although false reports of rape are uncommon, t Class of 1940 Research Professor of Law, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. J.D., Yale Law School; A.B., Harvard College. My thanks to Ronald Allen, Miranda Fricker, Terry Fromson, Andrew Gold, Emily Kadens, Sherry Kolb, Andrew Koppelman, Jennifer Lackey, Sarah Lawksy, Gregory Mark, Janice Nadler, and John McGinnis for their helpful suggestions and insights. Sarah Crocker and Tom Gaylord, Faculty Services and Scholarly Communications Librarian, contributed outstanding research assistance, and the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law Faculty Research Program furnished generous financial support. (1)