NCJ Number
74150
Journal
CURRENT AFFAIRS BULLETIN Volume: 56 Issue: 4 Dated: (September 1979) Pages: 24-32
Date Published
1979
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Following an overview of problems of rape victims and reasons why the crime is frequently unreported, this article discusses Australia's rape laws and proposed reforms.
Abstract
Rape is a frightening and degrading experience, but what follows the crime might be no less harrowing for the victim. If a victim decides to report a rape to the police, she will be questioned at length, undergo a medical examination, and frequently receive little support from friends and family. Police often decide not to pursue a rape complaint, but if a trial ensues, the victim can be questioned on prior sexual conduct and be subjected to unfavorable publicity. Rape differs from other violent offenses because the action on which the charge is based is one which is legal, consensual, and mutually agreeable in most circumstances. The state of mind is therefore crucial to a defense, but widely held attitudes toward women and rape create problems for the courts by clouding the issue of consent. Australian laws define rape as having sexual intercourse with a woman who is not one's wife without her consent and impose a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. The Royal Commission on Human Relationships seeks to change the law in order to reduce the emphasis on the sexual nature of the offense and thus shift the focus from consent. The Women's Electoral Lobby (WEL) advocates an approach based on the Michigan State law which does not reduce the sexual nature of the crime, but alters the consent aspect by legally presuming nonconsensual intercourse in situations where the victim is overcome by physical force or helpless. Other proposals create degrees of sexual assault to overcome the umbrella nature of present laws. The WEL would also eliminate a man's immunity to the charge of raping his wife. All States but New South Wales have limited the old rules of evidence which allowed a witness to be questioned on previous conduct. Some States provide protection for the victim by requiring oral evidence only in special circumstances and restricting public attendance at hearings. Ways to improve police and medical procedures for handling rape victims are being reviewed in all States. The article contains 16 footnotes and 2 references.