Are vulnerable and intimidated witnesses adequately protected during cross-examination under the current law? To appear as a witness in a criminal trial has been described as a terrifying, intimidating, difficult and stressful ordeal. It is not an easy experience for vulnerable and intimidated witnesses when the issue of giving evidence about the incident they were involved in is in question. This is because while the witnesses are giving evidence in court they are most likely to re-live the incident and the pain they suffered, and psychologically, this is very damaging. There are a range of measures enshrined in statute to protect victims of sexual offences in court, although these are now interpreted in light of Article 6 of the Human Rights Act, which provides the defendant with a right to a fair trial. Section 41 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 (YJCEA) restricts the circumstances in which evidence or questions about the sexual behaviour of a complainant outside the circumstances of the alleged offence can be introduced. Moreover, the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 introduced a range of measures that can be used to facilitate the gathering and giving of evidence by vulnerable and intimidated witnesses which are collectively known as "Special Measures". Nevertheless, the cross-examination of vulnerable and intimidated witnesses is a significant issue, as Andrew Norfolk, chief investigative reporter of The Times has underlined in his articles. The complainant of a sexual offence could previously be cross-examined about being a prostitute or about indiscriminate promiscuity in order to show that she was not to be trusted. There was a tendency to explore the victim’s past sexual experience to... ... middle of paper ... ... language. Next there is the problem of cross- examination which contaminates evidence by suggestion. In W and M, two boys aged 10 and 11 years old were convicted of sexual offences but in each case, the complainant, an eight-year old girl, had withdrawn her key accusations under cross- examination. The Court of Appeal however, concluded that the retractions were unreliable because they were obtained by the use of highly suggestive questioning such as ‘This happened, didn’t it?’ The Court’s message is that cross-examiners must avoid contaminating the witness’s answers. Questions may be quite clear but not permissible because they pressure the witness to respond in one way or another. In the case of E, the Court of Appeal repeated that heavily suggestive questions are not permissible because of the risk that the witness will become confused. Also,
Victims’ rights include being informed of the investigation, being able to make a witness statement, being informed of the charges laid against the accused and being treated with sympathy and compassion. (Charter of Victim’s Rights NT 2016). The rights of the accused are outlined Article 14 of ‘The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights’, which states that the accused must; be informed of the charges laid against them, have adequate time to prepare and choose a counsel of their choosing, be tried without undue delay, be tried in the presence of the court, not be compelled to testify against themselves or confess guilt and be compensated by the court if wrongfully convicted (ICCPR 1966). These rights must be upheld to ensure equality before the law, however, when neglected justice is denied as illustrated in the Mallard and Raggett
``In criminal law, confession evidence is a prosecutor’s most potent weapon’’ (Kassin, 1997)—“the ‘queen of proofs’ in the law” (Brooks, 2000). Regardless of when in the legal process they occur, statements of confession often provide the most incriminating form of evidence and have been shown to significantly increase the rate of conviction. Legal scholars even argue that a defendant’s confession may be the sole piece of evidence considered during a trial and often guides jurors’ perception of the case (McCormick, 1972). The admission of a false confession can be the deciding point between a suspect’s freedom and their death sentence. To this end, research and analysis of the false confessions-filled Norfolk Four case reveals the drastic and controversial measures that the prosecuting team will take to provoke a confession, be it true or false.
Menaker, T. A., & Franklin, C. A. (2013). Commercially sexually exploited girls and participant perceptions of blameworthiness: Examining the effects of victimization history and race disclosure. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 28(10), 2024-2051.
Psychological research shows that eyewitness testimony is not always accurate, therefore it should not be used in the criminal justice system. Discuss.
This essay will explore reasons why females such as Vanessa George turn to the crime of sex offending. Demonstrating my knowledge and understanding of classical criminological theory, exploring biological theories such as penis envy and more contemporary views such as liberation theory within feminism. The essay will then go on to look at the inequalities female sex offenders face within the criminal justice system in comparison with males, using chivalry theory and evil woman theory to explain this.
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...
Sexual assault is the act of sexual intercourse without consent of the other person according to New South Wales Consolidation Act of 1900 (Austlii 2011) and is also described by the Australian Standard Offence Classification as ‘non-consensual’ acts or intents of sexual nature (ASOC 2008, p. 31) has become one of the most predominate crimes creating social harm in Australia. Social harm is defined as the negative influence through consequences impacting from the individual to the living conditions of the surrounding public (Cain & Howe 2008, p. 26). Sexual assault poses a social threat to all aspects of community, spreading insecurity in the 9000 victims across Australia and 1900 victims in NSW alone as indicated in the Australian Bureau of Statistics Crime Victimisation Report (ABS 2011, p. 40). This is supported by the victimization rate of all sexually assaulted victims between ages 10 to 14 being 4 times greater than all the other age groups (ABS 2010). Another major issue within the boundaries of sexual assault is that it holds one of the lowest prosecution rates with only 1 in 10 incidents able to prosecute the offender as guilty (Fitzgerald 2006, Pg. 1). The abundance of statistics and reports conducted all imply that sexual assault is still a predominate issue of crime within Australia.
== == Throughout the UK and internationally, the issue of prostitution is seen as an ever-increasing problem. For the purpose of this assignment I will concentrate on the issue of prostitution within the United Kingdom. There has been a marked rise in the incidence of street prostitution since the 1980s and a growth in the proportion of intravenous drug users involved in street prostitution. In Glasgow, police estimate that ar... ...
According to RAINN, (2009) approximately 10 per cent of all victims of sexual assault and abuse are adult and juvenile males. In terms of the nature of assault, real figures include a compendium of reported incidents ranging from unwanted sexual touching to forced penetration. To qualify this statement, it must be understood that the percentage does not reflect a vast number of crimes that go unreported due to issues that will be discussed in the present paper.
...expert testimony in assessing the reliability of disputed confessions. The reason people make false confessions is typically due to a combination of factors such as psychological vulnerabilities, nature of the custodial confinement and the police interviewing tactics. Standardized psychological tests have been devised in order to assess personality factors such as suggestibility and compliance that render some people more vulnerable than others but these should never bee looked at in isolation. Studies indicate that reported cases are only the ‘tip of the iceberg’. It appears that young people are particularly vulnerable and often make false confessions in order to protect others. It is not only people with learning disability or major mental illness´ that are susceptible to make false confessions; depending on the context, anybody can.
The admission of the testimony, in this case, is not harmful due to the strength of the state’s case and the existence of other evidence that would lead to the same conclusion without a reasonable doubt.
Every day a child is called on to testify in a courtroom. Children who have to testify in open court are easily influenced by outside sources. This paper will show the reasons children should not be used as witnesses in a courtroom. I will show all the different influences that a child receives and prove them uncredible. The interview process can influence a child greatly. Ceci and Bruck (1995) found a study that shows that child witnesses may be questioned up to12 times during the course of an investigation. The questioning process can take up to a year and a half to be completed. Children are not capable of remembering exact details for that period. Their answers to questions will change each time he or she is asked. This is because they do not retain information in the same way as an adult. Most studies have shown that children start to lose their ability to recall an event accurately only 10 days after the original event has happened. Another factor in a child’s ability to recall an event is stress. A child can go into a shock stage and repress all memories of what has happened to them. These memories may not resurface for many years. This affects a child’s ability to identify the suspect in photo and live line-ups. The amount of stress a child goes through affects their ability to answer questions in an interview, if they cannot remember what has happened, how are they supposed to answer the myriad of questions the interviewer will ask them.
...sequently arrested and charged with unlawful sex .At the trial, the judge was disparaging of the girl’s position, describing her as ‘a willing participant’ at 12 years of age, ignoring the fact that if the defendant had committed the offence after May 2003 when the new Sexual Offences Act came into force, he would be liable for an immediate charge of raping a child under 13.The defendant was given a two-year conditional discharge, was made to sign the Sex Offenders Register and escaped prison. This case study is evidential that young girls are much more aware of their sexuality and their consent. Many young girls participate in weekend socialising, drinking and using drugs with men, who consequently believe these girls are at the legal age of consenting in both sexual intercourse and drinking alcohol, only when do these young girls go too far is when rape is cried.
Most sexual acts performed by prostitutes are fellatio (Leonard, 1990; Freund, Leonard, & Lee, 1989; Freund, Lee, & Leonard, 1991). Therefore, this may stem from men’s representation of sex through an orgasm and intercourse (Kimmel & Holler, 2011, p. 292). Consequently, this leads to the focus on the male genitalia as the major area for pleasure (Kimmel & Holler, 2011, p.292). This stems from the male socialization towards sex being an agent of hegemonic authentication, with proving how high their sexual prowess is (Kimmel & Holler, 2011, p. 9). Correspondingly, these notions are constructed in the mind of the man to produce the correct gender behaviours (Kimmel & Holler, 2011, p.
Prostitution is one of the oldest jobs in the world and perhaps considered the ultimate victimless crime (Ruskin, 2012). As a profession that is estimated to bring in over 14 billion dollars a year in the United States alone with nearly 1 million prostitutes performing the acts, there ...