NCJ Number
91208
Date Published
1982
Length
269 pages
Annotation
This book examines the cultural factors influencing attitudes toward rape, the dynamics of rape from the perspectives of the victim and offender, and the history of and current official response to rape in the United Kingdom and Australia.
Abstract
Following a case history that demonstrates some of the difficulties in gaining a rape conviction in the United Kingdom (proving the use of force and criminal intent), the cultural mindsets that perpetuate rape fantasies about victim reactions and the acceptability of male sexual aggression are identified and discussed. Using detailed descriptions of rape incidents by both victims and perpetrators, the text portrays the behaviors associated with rape. Rape statistics and theories are presented; the history of rape law is traced; and current law is examined, particularly the aspects focusing on the requirement that nonconsent and criminal intent (perpetrator's intent to have sexual intercourse with the victim believing she is not consenting) be established to gain a conviction. Police procedure and medical and forensic examination are reviewed from the perspectives of the victims and the professionals involved. The characteristics of rape trials, the effects of rape on the victims, and the sentences dispensed to rapists are discussed. The concluding chapter offers recommendations for law reform that will reduce the tendency to place unnecessary burdens on the defendant in rape trials. Chapter notes are provided.