Rape complainants and rape suspects and/or defendants were afforded anonymity in 1976 by The Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act. This act sought to guard innocent defendants from the inevitable stigma stemming from being accused of rape. It also aimed to create equality between the two parties. Rape suspects and/or defendants lost their entitlement to anonymity in 1988. Nonetheless, there has still been widespread debate about whether defendant anonymity should be restored. The coalition government proposed to “extend anonymity in rape cases to defendants” . However, they were unsuccessful. A poll conducted by the Independent suggested that three in four of the respondents believed that anonymity in rape cases should be afforded to defendants. …show more content…
The anonymity is imposed right from the time they make a complaint and lasts the rest of their lives. It is a criminal offence for the media or indeed a member of the public, to reveal a rape complainant’s identity. Ten people in the Ched Evan’s were fined for revealed the identity of the victim. One of the reasons for introducing anonymity for rape complainants was that "public knowledge of the indignity which [the complainant] has suffered in being raped may be extremely distressing and even positively harmful, and the risk of such public knowledge can operate as a severe deterrent to bringing proceedings” (The Heliborn Committee). There are very limited circumstances in which a complainant’s anonymity will be lifted. These include when the complainant herself, decides to waive her right to anonymity or when the court believes that by doing so, it will encourage other potential witnesses to come …show more content…
Speaking of her experience she stated that the “stigma attached to this crime is like no other. She has ruined our lives, yet she stays anonymous” . Stigma is especially prevalent in cases involving children. The Heliborn committee suggested that "current research indicates that between 5% and 7% of persons arrested for child abuse related offences commit suicide". Those who oppose a change in the law which would see rape defendant’s identities concealed argue that the public are more than capable of understanding the notion of “innocent until proven guilty”. However, rape can be very difficult to prove. This is because a high proportion of rapes take place in a person’s home and the perpetrator is often known to the victim, for example, studies suggest that 58% of rape perpetrators were the victim’s friend, date, colleague or acquaintance. For the prosecution to succeed there must be a meticulous examination of consent and because there are often no other witnesses to a rape apart from the victim herself, often it will be a case of who do the jury believe. This could imply to the public that the reasoning for acquittal was merely insufficient evidence or
Since the second wave of feminism in the 1960’s women have demanded for equality rights. The R V. Ewanchuck case created many disagreement’s with feminists on the topic of rape myths. It has not only been seen as a precedent for the criminal law but as well an eye opener for the society to create awareness for this act. Since society continues to support most rape myths, it overlooks the act itself and puts the blame and responsibility on the victim as opposed to the perpetrator. This has created a rape culture within society. The term rape culture was created to demonstrate the ways in which victims were blamed for sexual assault, and how male sexual violence was normalized. Feminists are exploring the world of rape myths in Canadian law
In conclusion, Rape Shield laws are in place to protect the victims, sometimes it works and at other times the victim can be ridiculed and their past can be advertised, due to many holes and ways around the
demonstrated that less than a third of the victims were even accused of rape or
Rape Shield Laws Facing with much criticism from women’s group with the legal definitions of rape and how rape cases are being processed in the legal system, the government is forced to pass a Rape Law reform in the 1970s. Rape law reform urging courts to treat rape case the same as other crimes, rape law reforms modified traditional rape laws and ratified evidentiary reforms in every state in the United States. The most common and widespread changes occurred in three areas. First, rape was redefined so that there was no longer a single crime of rape.
Gender is predominating in the criminal justice system and sexual assault exemplifies the contrast found between the traditional and non-traditional justice systems employed over time. Sexual assault poses a social threat to all aspects of community, spreading insecurity in 43400 victims across Australia and 13300 victims in NSW alone as indicated in the recent Australian Bureau of Statistics Crime Victimisation Report. (ABS 2011, p. 40) There has also been an increase of sexual assault by 51% since 1995 with an average of 4% every year. (ABS 2010) Another major issue within the boundaries of sexual assault is that it holds one...
Lievore, D 2004, ‘Victim credibility in adult sexual assault cases’, Trends and issues in crime and criminal justice, no. 288. Australian Institute of Criminology, [Online]. Available at: http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi2/tandi288.html. [Accessed 14 April 2011].
In a study done by The Journal of Clinical Psychology, “the primary reason for not reporting seemed to combine a type of guilt with embarrassment.” With the help of utilizing support groups, clubs, and other programs among college campuses that are designed to make the victim’s experience a little easier, the victims may not feel as embarrassed to come out and may feel safer in their decision to move forward with their case. One of the most notable effects of rape is the psychological impact that it has on the victim immediately as well as long-term. Many victims feel depression, anxiety, and other sudden onset mental illnesses as a result of their attack and can last for years post-attack. The Journal of Interpersonal Violence reported that in their study of 95 victims over a 12 week long period, “by 3 months post-crime 47% still met the full criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.” This prolonged experience of emotional trauma can weaken the person’s overall mental wellbeing and cause the trauma to stick with them for the rest of their lives, especially if there are no support resources around them. As cited in the Journal of Clinical Psychology study previously, the number one reason for not reporting is the feeling of embarrassment which causes the victims to not talk about their experience and to shut out those around
Sexual assault is an under-reported crime. It is difficult for women to report sexual abuse but it is far more difficult for men. For males, it is exponentially more difficult to report such crimes, thus making it more difficult for victim advocates to present an environment where victims feel comfortable coming forward to report sex crimes. To this end, according to RAINN (2009) male victims of sex related crimes may find it easier to make a first report anonymously, giving them the opportunity to speak to an objective list, specifically trained to address specific and complex emotional issues related to this crime.
The introduction chapter 'Rethinking rape law' addresses an analytical overview of rape laws throughout a range of jurisdictions. Thus, engaging the development and debate of sexual assault laws within international and comparative perspectives. Within this overview, research emerges towards the vast supply of rape complaints during criminal investigations.
...t issue in modern day United States. A disturbing trend that was observed was the high amount of sexual assault occurrences, but the low amount of convictions for sex offenders. In an effort to solve this issue, the initial step was to identify the major contributors to this phenomenon, which included unprocessed rape kits and misinformed jurors and judges. Laws to regulate the processing of rape kits and the funding of sexual abuse-focused educational programs were suggested, and it is expected that these alternatives will become potential solutions to the issue of low conviction rate. Upon entering society, individuals have the right to a sense of security and peace of mind, and their rights should be protected through the authority of the law. It is only natural to preserve these ideals for all individuals, which involves the removal of harmful agents.
It could be argued, and has been argued, that all sorts of bias, sexist language and behaviour are still common and still enter the criminal justice process consequent on the sex of the offender this is because the criminal justice system can favour potential female offenders meaning more men appearing as known offenders (Pollak, 1950). However men are more predominantly to commit mor...
Sexual assault is defined as a type of behaviour that occurs without explicit consent from the recipient and under sexual assault come various categories such as sexual activities as forces sexual intercourse, incest, fondling, attempted rape and more (Justice.gov. 2017). People often become victims of sexual assault by someone they know and trust (Mason & Lodrick, 2013) which is conflicting to the public’s perception and beliefs that offenders are strangers. Women are the main victims for sexual assault and are 5 times more likely to have been a victim of sexual assault from a male (Wright, 2017, p. 93). Men are victims of sexual assault however only 0.7% of men, compared to 3.2% of women, experience some form of sexual assault which highlights how vulnerable women are compared to men. Sexual assault is publicised and exposed in the media, however is often
Representations of victims such as Allison Baden-Clay who was a regular mother, loving wife with kids can lead the public to assume only those who share her traits can be victims as well (Christie, 1986, p.19). Those who are incapable physically and have never done anything wrong in their life will be given the benefit of doubt and advantage in their case, in comparison to other victims different to them. This also overlooks the fact which asserts males are more likely to be assaulted and be victims of crime, which many are still not aware of (Australian Institute of Criminology, 2013). Therefore, the public will accept the stereotypes of the attributes a victim consists of, without being aware of the reality where anyone can be
To comprehend the underlying levels of conviction, there are unfortunate factors from the police, the criminal justice system, the probability of evidence and issue of consent that make convictions immensely difficult to prove. This essay will investigate those measures showing the contrasts of rape and why it is tricky to prove rape occurred without consent, without any corroborative evidence, attitudes of police towards rape victims, the victims withdrawing their report due to personal circumstances and the handling of victims in court, that lead to many offenders having a non-custodial sentence or being acquitted of a rape charge. In the first paragraph, I will explain what constitutes rape and the variations of relationships in which rape is committed. The Sexual Offences Act 2003 (the Act) came into force on the 1st May 2004. The purpose of the Act was to strengthen and modernise the law on sexual offences, whilst improving preventative measures and the protection of individuals from sexual offenders.
Victims often find that they have to deal with a lot of harassment even after being shamed. For example, some men will come onto girls who have a reputation of being ‘sluts’ because they think the girls are going to be ‘easy’ and ‘into it”; thus, slut shaming can ruin how people, especially men, perceive and treat a woman. Slut shaming can also increase rape culture by discrediting a women’s allegation of rape due to her sexual history. In so many cases where rape is reported, officers and lawyers attack the victims by questioning how they were dressed prior to being rape, how they acted, were they being ‘promiscuous’, or were they flirting with their rapist; if any of the above questions were answered “yes” they would claim the victim was “asking for it”. In the Steubenville rape case, a 16 year old girl was recorded being raped by two football players at a party. The footage was later sent to other classmates and quickly spread throughout the whole school; as a result of the “stigma surrounding sexual assault, she [the victim] was labeled as a slut and viciously tormented by her classmates,” (Nelson, 3). In cases like these, girls are slut-shamed for being victims of sexual