Joan Little's Trial Testimony and Self-Defense Account

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This chapter delves into Joan Little's trial testimony recounting the harrowing encounter with Clarence Alligood, where she defended herself against his threats with an ice pick. Joan's reasons for not reporting to the police right away and the challenging trial interrogation are also discussed.

When Karen Bethea-Shields was in college, she heard a judge say, “No way in the world a Black woman can get raped.” A few years later, in 1975, she helped successfully defend Joan Little—a Black woman—who became the first woman in the U.S. to be found not guilty of murder using the defense that she used deadly force to resist sexual assault.

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