More Related Content
Viewers also liked (20)
![Submodulo12[1].2 v8.0](https://cdn.slidesharecdn.com/ss_thumbnails/submodulo121-161228153647-thumbnail.jpg?width=560&fit=bounds)
Similar to Mother Knows Best: Gender Roles in the Trial of Molly Midyette (17)
Mother Knows Best: Gender Roles in the Trial of Molly Midyette
- 1. MOther Knows Best: Gender Roles in the Trial of Molly Midyette B Y C a i t l i n D u f f y
- 2. Introduction The purpose of this presentation is to argue that gender role stereotyping exists in our legal system and it could be the reason that Molly Midyette was convicted so harshly in the death of her son Jason My presentation draws from articles surrounding the cases of Molly and Alex Midyette, but a large amount comes from a presentation and discussion with Mollys parents
- 3. Introduction (double click) YouTube Video
- 4. Introduction We would like to believe that outdated gender stereotypes like in the previous video dont still exist but sadly they do: We still see women making a lower wage than men for the same jobs Women are still thought to be less intelligent than men concerning math and science Women are expected to stay home and do the cooking and cleaning
- 5. Introduction We still see these gender stereotypes in popular media He cooked, he cleaned, he did everything my mother does, so he was the woman of the house.
- 6. Introduction It seems that much of society is making a persons sex synonymous with their gender This is an issue dating back to the 18th century when Eunuchs were given a different gender orientation because they lacked biological aspects that the male gender possessed
- 7. Introduction What is the problem with interchanging someones sex with their gender? Are they that different? Sex and gender are different and it is important to distinguish between the two and to know what I mean by gender role sex: refers to a persons biology and consists of male, female or intersex gender: refers to a persons behaviors, feelings and attitudes that society relates to a persons biological sex However, many people associate with a gender that is not associated with their biological sex gender role: The expected social behavior of an individual based on their biological sex
- 8. Introduction It is important to know these differences because many people get a gender and gender roles assigned to them because of their sex While it is typical for those to act out the gender associated with their sex, it is not necessarily always the case It is also important to note that just because you act out a particular gender, it does not mean that you have to assume the roles associated with the gender
- 9. Introduction What does gender and gender roles have to do with the Justice system? The short answer should be nothing, but it most certainly does Gender is no stranger to the legal system, and cases concerning gender inequality have been fought since the 1970s: 1975: Foritn v. Darlington Little League - Founded unconstitutional that girls couldnt play in little league 1984: Planned Parenthood v. Board of Medical Review - Successful in challenging the state law that required husbands to be noti鍖ed before a woman could have an abortion
- 10. Introduction Not all cases that involve gender roles are focused around gender discrimination In some court cases the verdicts that are reached may be based on arguments that perpetuate the ideas of stereotypical gender roles This is what happened to Molly Midyette in her trial Molly was convicted of child abuse resulting in death
- 11. Background on the Trial of Molly Midyette
- 12. Background Molly was convicted for the death of her son under the charge of child abuse resulting in death in mid 2007, at the age of 28 The conviction arguably occurred because Molly assumed the gender role of a mother and stereotypical conclusions about this role were made by the prosecution
- 13. Background To understand how Molly could have possibly been convicted based on gender roles, it is important to look at the background of the death of Mollys son, Jason
- 14. Background Molly Midyette married her husband Alex in the summer of 2005, due to an unplanned pregnancy
- 15. Background During the pregnancy Molly suffered from preeclampsia Preeclampsia occurs in pregnant women after the twentieth week of pregnancy and can cause high blood pressure Symptoms of preeclampsia include: Lasting headaches, belly pain, as well as nausea and vomitting
- 16. Background Jason Midyette was born December 17, 2005. Though he was a bit premature the preeclampsia did not seem to effect him, and he was a healthy boy After Jason was born it was suggested by Alex and his parents that Molly return to work and Alex be a stay at home dad The interesting aspect to Molly returning to work is that both Alex and herself were employed by his parents
- 17. Background On February 24, 2006 Molly received a call at work from her husband saying that he believed Jason was sick Molly and Alex took Jason to their regular physician,where they discovered signs of swelling in Jasons head, and he was rushed to the emergency room at Boulder Community Hospital
- 18. Background At the hospital Jason under went a series of tests which revealed he had a major skull fracture and that he had over 30 broken bones, all of which were at different stages of healing This suggested that Jason had been repeatedly abused At this point the police were called to investigate Molly and Alex Jason was rushed to the Childrens Hospital in Denver, where he slipped into a coma
- 19. Background Jason Midyette died on March 6, 2006, two days after he was removed from life support at only ten weeks old
- 20. Background Police pursued Molly and Alex for the death of their son and were indicted for the charge of child abuse resulting in death two days after Jason died This charge holds the same consequences as second degree murder
- 21. Background Molly and Alex were tried separately, both trials starting in 2007 Mollys trial was not exceptionally long, and just weeks after it started she was convicted of the crime of Child Abuse Resulting in Death and was sentenced to sixteen years in prison Alex was also convicted in his trial. However, he was charged with Criminally Negligent Homicide, which is a lesser charge than Mollys
- 22. Background There was a lot of controversy that surrounded outcomes of the trials of Molly and Alex because there was no evidence that pointed to one of them being more guilty (if guilty at all) over another, so why did Molly get a worse sentence? During Mollys trial there were three major issues that were brought to light that made Molly seem responsible for Jasons death because of her role as a female and mother
- 23. Gender Roles in the Trial of Molly Midyette
- 24. Gender Roles in the Trial During Mollys trial there were three major issues that were brought to light that made Molly seem responsible for Jasons death because of her role as a female and mother, and her not ful鍖lling these roles. The points made were: 1. The nursery for Jason was not decorated or painted in a way to re鍖ect they were having a boy 2. Molly returned to work while Alex became a stay at home dad 3. Mother Knows Best
- 25. Gender Roles in the Trial 1. The 鍖rst point that the prosecution made was that Molly did not decorate the nursery to re鍖ect her and Alex were having a boy The gender role that this violates is that new mothers are supposed to want to nest and create a comfortable and inviting home for their newborn By Molly not nesting, the conclusion was drawn that she was not excited for the child and that she might even resent him
- 26. Gender Roles in the Trial There are many issues with this being evidence for motivation to harm her son: Molly was suffering from preeclampsia and the symptoms associated might make it hard to be around the smell of paint or do any sort labor This could almost be an argument for her loving her son, she took care of herself and Jason before taking care of super鍖cial needs While decorating a room is something that is traditionally done in preparation of a new child, it is certainly not evidence to dispute a mothers love for her child in court Why did Molly have to paint the nursery? Shouldnt Alex be held just as accountable for this task especially when Molly was not 100 percent healthy? Alex not being held responsible for painting the nursery completely reinforces the idea of Molly being held responsible solely because she was the woman and mother
- 27. Gender Roles in the Trial 2. The second point that the prosecution made against Molly was that Molly returned to work after Jason was born while Alex was a stay at home dad The gender role that this violates is that new mothers should want to stay at home so they can bond with their newborn By Molly returning to work, the argument that she didnt love Jason or resented him, was perpetuated
- 28. Gender Roles in the Trial There are several issues with this being evidence for motivation to harm her son: The 鍖rst issue here is that Molly was told to return to work by her husband and both her step-parents This is so important is because both Molly and Alex were employed by Alexs parents and even though Molly wanted to be home with Jason, her step-parents forced her hand to return to work This could be argument that Alex may have wanted to harm Jason because he made it so he was alone with him so often Another issue is that Molly returning to work could have been more bene鍖cial for Jason in the long run Even though both Molly and Alex were employed by his parents Molly made more money than him. She gave the impression that she was ok with returning to work so they could make more money, so Jason could be better provided for
- 29. Gender Roles in the Trial 3. The 鍖nal point made against Molly in her trial concerning gender roles was the idea that Mother Knows Best The gender role that Molly allegedly violated here was that a mother should know when there is something wrong with their child
- 30. Gender Roles in the Trial This supposed violation of gender roles worked against Molly in two separate but similar ways. 1. She should have known how sick Jason was when she 鍖rst saw him on February 24th, and not wasted time by going to the physician and going straight to the ER 2. If she wasnt committing the abuse herself, she should have known that Jason was being harmed over time and known about the numerous broken bones
- 31. Gender Roles in the Trial The issues with the 鍖rst idea of Mother Knows Best are: On the day that Jason was taken to the hospital there was a large gap of time between when Jason arrived at the childrens hospital and when he 鍖rst showed symptoms of being ill The argument here is that because she was Jasons mother she should have sensed the severity of his injuries and taken more drastic measures sooner The problem with this logic is that Jasons regular physician didnt see the extent of his injuries upon his examination, so how was a post-grad law-student supposed to know? As stated in a previous point, Alex should be just as responsible for the welfare of his child Just because Molly is a female and identi鍖es with the woman gender does not mean that skirts Alex of his parental responsibilities
- 32. Gender Roles in the Trial The issues with the second part of the argument of Mother Knows Best are: There were accusations of Alex being the abuser of Jason and thats why he wanted to stay at home If this were the case it would be very easy for Alex to hide the broken bones of Jason. If he cause the injuries he would easily be able to make an excuse for them The other issue here is that Molly loved and trusted her husband. So even if Jason had been acting strange on other occasions, if Alex said everything was 鍖ne, Molly probably believed him Intuition, no matter how strong, can be snuffed out by putting your trust in another person
- 33. Conclusion
- 34. Conclusion Court cases are often extremely complex and very seldom are simply black and white The case with Molly Midyette is no exception As complex as the case seems it could be argued that the conviction was made based on pre-existing ideas of gender roles that were presented by the prosecution
- 35. Conclusion The gender roles that Molly supposedly violated were: Mothers should nest for their newborn Mothers should want to spend as much time with their children as possible, and stay with them instead of returning to work right away Mother knows best
- 36. Conclusion It would be irresponsible to say that the outcome of Mollys case was based solely on gender roles, however, if these pre-existing gender roles did not exist in the minds of society Molly may have not been charged as severely for a crime that I dont believe she committed
- 37. References "7NEWS - Alex Midyette Given Maximum Sentence Of 16 Years - News Story." 7NEWS. N.p., 15 May 2009. Web. 21 Oct. 2012. <http:// www.thedenverchannel.com/news/alex-midyette-given-maximum-sentence- of-16-years>. "Discrimination Court Cases Over the Years." RI ACLU: Featured Court Cases. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2012. <http://www.riaclu.org/CourtCases/ sexdiscriminationcs.html>. Warner, Joel. "Molly Midyette, a Mother Sentenced to Sixteen Years for the Death of Her Son, Speaks out." Molly Midyette. Westword News, 06 Apr. 2011. Web. 21 Oct. 2012. <http://www.westword.com/2011-04-07/news/ molly-midyette-speaks-out/>.
- 38. 1984: Planned Parenthood v. Board of Medical Review Successful challenge to state law requiring husbands to be noti鍖ed before a woman could have an abortion. (PARAPHRASE DONT KEEP THIS WAY)