Cleopatra Jones

Doli Incapax Cleopatra Jones

Doli Incapax is a disturbing memoir by a current practising lawyer who guts and fillets the legal profession, the police, the Catholic Church and what she considers the most toxic institution of all; the family. It reveals the politics of inaction and the fragility of the survivor community in her hometown, Conservative Town, in particular.

Ms Jones slams the criminal justice system for being an industry that feeds off the legal vulnerability of victims who bravely disclose to the institutions that still silence and sanitise the truth. She shines the spotlight on the reasons why there is only a 3% conviction rate in sexual assault matters and it has nothing to do with the truth, which morphs into a new false narrative spun by defence lawyers through cross examination and believed by juries ad nauseam.

She started out as an idealist, believing in concepts like 'justice', 'the rule of law' and 'innocent until proved guilty' but soon realised that the practise and procedures of law amount to systemic abuse of already traumatised people. She feels guilty taking clients to court as she likens her role as lawyer to taking lambs to the slaughter, so much so that she regularly feels like abandoning her legal career. She thought it was an admirable profession founded on helping people in need but if it doesn't really help them or bring them justice, she asks herself what is the point?

She recommends changing the law around sexual assault completely and for victims to not tell the police until they have the right to a lawyer and are given independent legal standing in criminal matters. This book exposes the mystery of the law and the mystery of the faith and provides detailed legal advice for victims of crime, advice they don't currently get. This whistleblower lawyer, with a victim hat on, starts her fight in Catholic Conservative Town and travels with her clients to Rome, the paedophilic epicentre of deceit. She continues her fight in conservative Town today and is determined to fight to the end; until victims of sexual assault win, and more than 3% of the time. Sadly, Ms Jones joins the 97% of sexual assault victims who get no justice, but the reasons why will stagger you.