By tf-lawyer.com After five long years, Ellie found herself finally on the stand, providing evidence against her rapist. She had been warned about what to expect from his defense team, but nothing could prepare her for the intense questioning she faced. “I felt bulldozed,” she recalled, particularly when confronted with CCTV footage showing her in a bar, adjusting her top. “There I was, having to tell a jury of my peers, ‘Yes, I have big breasts, and they’re heavy, so sometimes I have to readjust them.’” She reflected on the implications: “What were they suggesting? That I was trying to be provocative?”
Ellie’s experience is not an isolated incident. Recent research from Victim Support indicates that three-quarters of sexual offense victims report facing at least one question in court rooted in harmful rape myths and stereotypes. These questions often revolve around what victims did to prevent the assault, their alcohol or drug use, and details about their clothing.
In Ellie’s case, the defense attorney suggested that what transpired was merely a drunken night that she later regretted. “They implied I had been drinking excessively and maybe I forgot what happened,” she said. “The narrative he created was grotesque.” The attorney even posed the question, “Isn’t it true that you didn’t get raped? What actually happened is that you lured him in and regretted it the next day.”
In reality, Ellie had gone home alone after her night out, a fact confirmed by a friend in court. She woke up to discover the man on top of her. Her rapist, a repeat offender, was ultimately sentenced to 19 years for his attack on her and another woman. Despite the horror she endured, Ellie considers herself “one of the lucky ones.” Statistics reveal that for every 100 rapes reported to the police in England and Wales, fewer than two result in a guilty verdict.
One factor contributing to this is that around 60% of individuals who report rape withdraw from the justice process before their case even reaches trial. After reporting, victims often wait months or even years for charges to be filed against their assailants. The Criminal Bar Association estimates that it takes an average of two years for a case to go to trial.
Many victims worry that their behavior and sexual history will be scrutinized to influence the jury’s perception. Research into public attitudes on rape and sexual offenses supports this concern. A survey conducted by the Crown Prosecution Service found that many people hold misconceptions about rape, with fewer than half able to identify common rape myths. Alarmingly, one in ten respondents believed that women should take precautions against getting raped, while half thought that individuals under the influence of drugs or alcohol shared some responsibility if they were assaulted.
Kama Melly KC, who heads rape and serious sexual offenses for the Criminal Bar Association, highlights the challenges of proving rape in court. “Most of the time, there won’t be witnesses or CCTV footage. In rape cases, consent is typically the defense, and there’s rarely forensic evidence,” she explains. “Many don’t have injuries from non-consensual sexual activity, leaving one person’s word against another’s.”
Melly points out that the responsibility of a defense barrister is to represent their client’s interests within ethical guidelines. “Our courts tend to reflect societal attitudes. If society still blames women for being drunk and going to a man’s home, should the barrister not address those biases?”
She adds that allowing victims to respond to questions that the defense might raise is crucial for fairness in the process. Ultimately, she believes it’s the judge’s role to intervene if questioning becomes excessive or irrelevant.
But what happens when a victim feels that the judge themselves is perpetuating harmful myths?
Leila, a victim of abuse at the hands of her former partner, was left “shocked” by remarks made by the judge during her sentencing, despite the judge sentencing her abuser to three years in prison for his crimes. The judge referred to Leila sleeping in “his bed” without underwear, commentating, “you reluctantly consented to having sex with him as part of the give and take of a relationship.”
Leila expressed her disbelief: “She said I was getting into his bed, not our bed. As if I should fear for my safety based on what I’m wearing.”
The judge also declined to issue an indefinite restraining order against Leila’s ex-partner, suggesting that Leila’s present attitude might lead her to report him for mundane actions. Both the Crown Prosecution Service and Leila’s private attorney appealed the sentence as being unduly lenient, arguing that the judge had diminished the seriousness of the offenses through erroneous stereotypes.
Despite these appeals, the court found the sentencing appropriate, concluding that the judge had adequately considered the relevant factors.
