Saturday, September 13, 2008

As Mayor, Palin billed rape victims for exams

The Huffington Post has quite the story on Sarah Palin as Mayor of Wasilla, and how she had a direct hand in imposing fees to pay for post-sexual assault medical exams conducted by the city to gather evidence. Her role is confirmed by the Wasilla City budget documents, found here.

Under Sarah Palin’s administration, Wasilla cut funds that had previously paid for the medical exams and began charging victims or their health insurers the $500 to $1200 fees. Although Palin spokeswoman Maria Comella wrote USA Today earlier this week that the GOP vice presidential nominee “does not believe, nor has she ever believed, that rape victims should have to pay for an evidence-gathering test…To suggest otherwise is a deliberate misrepresentation of her commitment to supporting victims and bringing violent criminals to justice,” Palin, as mayor, fired police chief Irl Stambaugh and replaced him with Charlie Fannon, who with Palin’s knowledge, slashed the budget for the exams and began charging the city’s victims of sexual assault. The city budget documents demonstrate Palin read and signed off on the new budget. A year later, alarmed Alaska lawmakers passed legislation outlawing the practice.

Full story with staggering evidence at the Huffington Post.


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