Two out of three rape trials fail to secure a conviction

Published on Tuesday 21 June 2011 17:47

Almost two-thirds of rape charges brought before Scottish courts for trial did not result in a conviction, new Crown Office figures have revealed.

Anti-rape campaigners have warned that many victims feel "very let down" by the justice system after statistics showed that conviction rates fell in 2008-9.

The Crown Office said 62 per cent of charges indicted for trial did not lead to conviction, while 32 per cent did - the remaining 6 per cent of cases had not been concluded.

The figures represent a fall from 36 per cent the previous year, 2007-8, representing 19 less convictions.

They only reflect those complaints proceeded by both police and prosecutors, many allegations never make it to court.

Only about a third - 179 - of the 528 rape charges reported to the procurator fiscal in 2008-9 went to trial, down from 211 the previous year. Although as more were reported last year, this represented a slight percentage rise.

Sandy Brindley, the national co-ordinator of Rape Crisis Scotland, said there had been important and welcome changes over the past few years to how rape is prosecuted in Scotland, such as the setting-up of the National Sexual Crimes Unit. But she added: "It is worrying, however, that so few cases get to court.

"It can take a lot of courage to report a crime like rape to the police and it can be devastating to find out your case is not going to make it to court.

"At Rape Crisis Scotland, we continue to be contacted by women who feel very let down by the justice system, either because their case hadn't made it to court, or where it did get to court it resulted in a not proven verdict.

"It is clear much remains to be done to ensure rape survivors have access to justice."

The Crown Office said the figures pre-date changes made in May 2009 to improve the way in which sexual offences are investigated and prosecuted.

The National Sexual Crimes Unit now leads the prosecution of the most serious sexual offences, including rape and sexually-motivated murder. The unit is made up of a team of specialist prosecutors with expertise in the area.

Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, said: "Rape is a horrific crime and we want to ensure that those that commit it are caught and victims are given justice. We want to remove the obstacles that occur in so many cases."That is why we will explore how we can make sure juries will not be able to take into account any perceived delay in reporting rape or any apparent lack of resistance from the alleged victim when reaching their decisions."

Labour's justice spokeswoman, Johann Lamont, called for a change in rape laws.

She said: "We must be bold and ask ourselves honestly whether now is the time to make a profound and fundamental change to Scots law and remove the need for corroboration in rape cases.

"The inherent nature of rape is that corroboration of the crime itself is frequently not possible.

"While it is essential any new rules ensure an appropriate sufficiency of evidence before prosecutions proceed, we have to be prepared to make changes in the law that improve our legal system."