An Iowa teenager named Peiper Lewis, who was the victim of human trafficking, has been ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution to the family of the accused rapist who she stabbed to death in self-defense. She will also receive five years of closely supervised probation.
The controversial decision revolves around the fact that the teenager’s captor was technically asleep when she stabbed him to death, making him considered not to be an immediate threat.
“This court is presented with no other option,” Polk County District Judge David M. Porter said on Tuesday, noting the restitution is mandatory under Iowa law that has been upheld by the Iowa Supreme Court.
Police and prosecutors have both admitted that Lewis was both sexually assaulted and trafficked. Some states have so-called safe harbor laws, which give an increased level of criminal immunity to victims of trafficking, but Iowa is not among them.
“The next five years of your life will be full of rules you disagree with, I’m sure of it,” Porter said. “This is the second chance that you’ve asked for. You don’t get a third.”
Reading from a statement prior to her sentencing, Lewis said, “My spirit has been burned, but still glows through the flames. Hear me roar, see me glow, and watch me grow. I am a survivor.”
[Via]