Stacey Dooley's Powerful Documentary Exposes Harrowing Truths About Rape Trials
So, imagine this—you’re just getting ready for work, going about your morning as usual, when suddenly, a message pops up on your phone. It’s from someone you don’t really know, but what they have to say completely shakes your world. That’s exactly what happened to Jessie one seemingly ordinary morning in April 2021. She received a Facebook message from a woman named Lauren—an ex-girlfriend of her former partner. And the message? It was something no one should ever have to read.
Lauren revealed that during her relationship with the same man, she had been raped twice. She shared her painful truth, hoping Jessie had not experienced the same horror. But Jessie's worst fears were confirmed. She had been raped multiple times during their year-long relationship, something she had tried to push deep down, to forget. But now, faced with Lauren’s words, there was no more denying it. And it didn’t stop there. Lauren told her that yet another woman had also suffered at the hands of this man. Three victims. One perpetrator.
Jessie knew she had to act—not just for herself but for all the women who had suffered and those who might still be in danger. She reported the crimes to the police, setting in motion a long and grueling legal battle. It was bigger than just her story. It was about justice.
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This harrowing journey is at the heart of Stacey Dooley’s latest documentary, Rape on Trial . Over three years, the documentary follows the agonizing process of seeking justice after reporting rape, particularly when the perpetrator is someone the victim knows. Jessie’s case, along with those of two other survivors—a 19-year-old and a 22-year-old—highlights the crushing weight placed on victims, the complexities of securing convictions, and the immense pressure on the legal system.
The statistics are staggering. More than 80% of reported rapes involve someone known to the victim. And yet, the road to justice is an uphill battle. Jessie, once a confident and bubbly young woman, found herself battling anxiety, fear, and the weight of a system that often fails victims. The trial process took nearly four years, filled with delays, postponements, and endless waiting. And when it finally reached the courtroom, she had to relive her trauma, facing relentless cross-examination. But despite all of this, the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict.
And so, after years of waiting, another trial was set. More waiting, more stress, more reliving the worst moments of her life. And in January of this year, after everything she had endured, the verdict finally came in—Not guilty.
For Jessie, Lauren, and the other survivor, it was devastating. Years of their lives spent fighting for justice, only for the man who had violated them to walk free. Stacey Dooley herself admitted that after witnessing the ordeal, she had come to the bleak realization that if she were ever raped, she might not even report it. That’s how broken the system is.
And yet, Jessie doesn’t regret speaking out. She refuses to let the system silence her. ‘I had to do it, not just for me, but for other women like me,’ she says. The documentary is a stark reminder that we need to do better. That justice shouldn’t be so hard to achieve. That victims shouldn’t have to suffer twice—once at the hands of their attacker and again through a system that fails them.
Rape on Trial is available now on BBC iPlayer, and it’s something everyone needs to watch. Because these stories matter. Because justice matters. And because change is long overdue.
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