Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 15, No. 1, 1998, page 7
C. Cult-Rape --The Application of Rape Laws in the Cult Context
I define “cult-rape” as rape upon a cult member by another member or cult leader. If a cult-
rape victim indicated by her words or acts that she did not give consent, then her case
would be tried like any other rape case and justice should prevail. However, a successful
prosecution of a cult-rape may be hampered because the nature of the crime hinges upon
whether the victim gave consent. Cults, according to many researchers, subject their
members to coercive persuasion, thought reform, or other unusually high levels of
psychological influence, often referred to as brainwashing or mind control. This influence
affects the cult-rape victims‟ mental capacities and, consequently, their ability to consent.
Research revealed no reported cases where a court tried a defendant for rape of a cult
victim and where the consent of the victim was at issue.
There are numerous writings documenting the psychological power cults wield over
members. Clinical Psychologist Margaret Thaler Singer, having interviewed and worked with
more than 3,000 current and former members of cults, found that cults range in their levels
of psychological influence --from the relatively benign to those that exercise extraordinary
control and use thought-reform processes to influence and control members.41 Legal
commentators, Douglas Cook and Richard Delgado, suggest that cults cause their members
to lose the ability to think rationally42 and their ability to make voluntary choices.43 Another
commentator, Ann Penners Wrosch, argues that brainwashing by a religious cult is a type of
long-term coercive persuasion which “offend[s] basic notions of fairness and freedom
because ...the victim‟s will and autonomy is overcome by the persuader‟s will.”44
Researchers have also documented that sexual abuse and rape occur in cults. Dr. Singer,
for example, found that in the Peoples Temple in Jonestown, Guyana, “children were
frequently sexually abused,” and teenage girls “had to provide sex for influential people
courted by Jones.”45 According to Dr. Singer, many cults use sex and intimacy to “keep
members dependent on the group.”46 Sex and intimacy are tied to other forms of emotional
manipulation, including inducing feelings of guilt, shame, and fear.47
Janja Lalich found a prevalence of sexual exploitation in cults, which she defined as “the
exercise of power for the purpose of controlling, using, or abusing another person sexually
in order to satisfy the conscious or unconscious needs of the person in power¾whether
those needs be sexual, financial, emotional, or physical.”48 The range of sexual abuse spans
from “having to live in a sexually coercive environment” to rape, including marital rape.49
A woman who was a member of a cult for 21 years, Katherine E. Betz, describes the
psychological control her teacher had over her to perform sexually for him: “The bottom
line was that I couldn‟t say no to him. He knew more than I did. I felt flattered that he
even considered me. He was the teacher and I was the student. Because of the
asymmetrical relationship, he held the power.”50
The highly publicized trial of Charles Manson revealed that rape and other sexual abuse
occurred in that cult. During the murder trial of Charles Manson and his followers,
testimony of certain sexual activities was presented in order to establish the extent of
Manson‟s influence on the members of his cult, which he called the “Family.”51 One witness
testified that a 16-year-old girl was forced to stand wearing only bikini panties in a room
with many Family members surrounding her. Manson made advances toward her. She bit
him. He then struck her, raped her, and convinced others to do so. Upon these facts, and
others, the appellate court concluded that such testimony at trial was permissible to show
Manson‟s leadership of the Family: “the inference being that if Manson could induce bizarre
sexual activities, he could induce homicidal conduct.”52
Other cases further document that rape and sexual abuse have occurred in cults. In Scalf
v. Bennett,53 a federal court affirmed the conviction of a religious leader for statutory rape
C. Cult-Rape --The Application of Rape Laws in the Cult Context
I define “cult-rape” as rape upon a cult member by another member or cult leader. If a cult-
rape victim indicated by her words or acts that she did not give consent, then her case
would be tried like any other rape case and justice should prevail. However, a successful
prosecution of a cult-rape may be hampered because the nature of the crime hinges upon
whether the victim gave consent. Cults, according to many researchers, subject their
members to coercive persuasion, thought reform, or other unusually high levels of
psychological influence, often referred to as brainwashing or mind control. This influence
affects the cult-rape victims‟ mental capacities and, consequently, their ability to consent.
Research revealed no reported cases where a court tried a defendant for rape of a cult
victim and where the consent of the victim was at issue.
There are numerous writings documenting the psychological power cults wield over
members. Clinical Psychologist Margaret Thaler Singer, having interviewed and worked with
more than 3,000 current and former members of cults, found that cults range in their levels
of psychological influence --from the relatively benign to those that exercise extraordinary
control and use thought-reform processes to influence and control members.41 Legal
commentators, Douglas Cook and Richard Delgado, suggest that cults cause their members
to lose the ability to think rationally42 and their ability to make voluntary choices.43 Another
commentator, Ann Penners Wrosch, argues that brainwashing by a religious cult is a type of
long-term coercive persuasion which “offend[s] basic notions of fairness and freedom
because ...the victim‟s will and autonomy is overcome by the persuader‟s will.”44
Researchers have also documented that sexual abuse and rape occur in cults. Dr. Singer,
for example, found that in the Peoples Temple in Jonestown, Guyana, “children were
frequently sexually abused,” and teenage girls “had to provide sex for influential people
courted by Jones.”45 According to Dr. Singer, many cults use sex and intimacy to “keep
members dependent on the group.”46 Sex and intimacy are tied to other forms of emotional
manipulation, including inducing feelings of guilt, shame, and fear.47
Janja Lalich found a prevalence of sexual exploitation in cults, which she defined as “the
exercise of power for the purpose of controlling, using, or abusing another person sexually
in order to satisfy the conscious or unconscious needs of the person in power¾whether
those needs be sexual, financial, emotional, or physical.”48 The range of sexual abuse spans
from “having to live in a sexually coercive environment” to rape, including marital rape.49
A woman who was a member of a cult for 21 years, Katherine E. Betz, describes the
psychological control her teacher had over her to perform sexually for him: “The bottom
line was that I couldn‟t say no to him. He knew more than I did. I felt flattered that he
even considered me. He was the teacher and I was the student. Because of the
asymmetrical relationship, he held the power.”50
The highly publicized trial of Charles Manson revealed that rape and other sexual abuse
occurred in that cult. During the murder trial of Charles Manson and his followers,
testimony of certain sexual activities was presented in order to establish the extent of
Manson‟s influence on the members of his cult, which he called the “Family.”51 One witness
testified that a 16-year-old girl was forced to stand wearing only bikini panties in a room
with many Family members surrounding her. Manson made advances toward her. She bit
him. He then struck her, raped her, and convinced others to do so. Upon these facts, and
others, the appellate court concluded that such testimony at trial was permissible to show
Manson‟s leadership of the Family: “the inference being that if Manson could induce bizarre
sexual activities, he could induce homicidal conduct.”52
Other cases further document that rape and sexual abuse have occurred in cults. In Scalf
v. Bennett,53 a federal court affirmed the conviction of a religious leader for statutory rape
