Too Much, Too Late: The Advocacy Act in Ontario

This paper examines the concept of government‐based social advocacy on behalf of vulnerable people in the community. It uses as a case example the Ontario Advocacy Act, a statute that was surrounded by controversy through its short life. The more general question raised is whether the ideas of government‐based advocacy are fundamentally conceptually untenable, or whether the fault lay with the specifics of the act and its implementation. As governments globally cut back on social supports for vulnerable people, the need for advocacy and support are self‐evident. This paper explores the broader viability of this one, specific type of response.     

Status, Threat, and Stereotypes: Understanding the Function of Rape Myth Acceptance

This study applied system justification theory to understand the function of rape myth acceptance. Participants read a rape scenario that manipulated the difference in status between the perpetrator and victim, as well as the potential threat to perpetrator as depicted by whom the victim told about the rape. People’s opposition to equality and gender separately and together predicted rape myth acceptance. People with higher opposition to equality reported less rape myth acceptance when a higher-status perpetrator got away with rape than when he was reported to police. Conversely, people with lower opposition to equality reported more rape myth acceptance when the higher-status perpetrator got away with rape. People’s opposition to equality and gender interacted such that men with lower opposition to equality also reported more rape myth acceptance when the equal- and lower-status perpetrator got away with rape. Gender predicted rape myth acceptance such that when the lower-status perpetrator was reported to the police, women reported more rape myth acceptance whereas men reported less rape myth acceptance. This is the first study to show that rape myth acceptance is malleable and strategically motivated. These findings have implications for not only understanding rape myth acceptance, but also other ideologies that explain unethical behavior by advantaged groups.     

The Impact of Psychological Consequences of Rape on Rape Case Attrition: The Police Perspective

This paper examines whether the psychological sequelae of rape relate to rape case attrition by leading police to see the victim as less reliable. A mixed methods approach with two linked studies, one qualitative and one quantitative, was used. In Study 1, the qualitative study, interviews with 12 specialist police officers were analysed using Framework Analysis. In Study 2, the quantitative study, 76 specialist officers completed an online questionnaire to assess the generalisability of Study 1’s findings. In Study 1, officers’ perceptions of victims clustered into three stereotypes, which we label “the real victim”, “the mad discloser”, and “the bad discloser”. Victims who exhibited signs of shame, self-blame, and post-traumatic stress reactions which impeded their ability to give a coherent account of the rape were perceived as less reliable “mad” or “bad” victims. The findings of Study 2 supported these results. Although police interview strategies have improved in recent years, there is evidence that signs of trauma and shame in the victim are sometimes misinterpreted as signs of lying. This may affect attrition by impacting on victim-officer relationships. Further training on recognising trauma and understanding its consequences is recommended both for specialist officers and front-line staff.     

Towards a Contextual Definition of Rape: Consent,Coercion and Constructive Force

This paper considers ‘consent-based’ and ‘coercion-based’ models of defining rape. It argues that the ability of these models to adequately protect against violations of sexual autonomy is dependent on their engagement with the broader circumstances within which sexual choices are made. Following an analysis of both models it is argued that attempts to contextualise consent and coercion are often undermined by evaluative framings that encourage scrutiny of the complainant's actions at the expense of engagement with the broader circumstances. This is particularly problematic where rape occurs as a result of non-violent coercion and the victim does not verbally or physically demonstrate their lack of consent. The paper draws on United States military law and argues that the doctrine of constructive force, which has been used to deal with non-violent coercion in these contexts, has the potential to progressively reshape our contextual and evaluative framings in domestic contexts.     

Big Stick,Little Stick: Strategies for Controlling and Combating Environmental Crime

Environmental offences often have rather obscure victims. At the same time, we know that those crimes commonly regarded as the most serious have clearly visible victims. It is difficult for people to relate to environmental offences in the same way as many traditional crimes, and this makes it easier to commit breaches of the environmental regulations. One element in a control strategy ought therefore to be continuous attempts to discover really serious environmental crimes that are easily communicated to the public. Regulations are followed if we believe that others also do so. If we have a sense that cheating is widespread then group solidarity is weakened, and with it the inclination to abide by the rules. How then do individuals and businessmen develop the perception that control measures are working? This happens primarily by means of a perception that observance of the regulations is being monitored. Broadly based control measures and contacts are therefore of considerable importance. By means of risk assessment procedures, interventions can then be concentrated where they are judged to be most necessary. A broad arsenal of measures is needed to persuade companies to observe the regulations; an arsenal from big stick to little stick, from self-regulation and service to administrative sanction charges and criminal offences.     

'Condemn a Little More, Understand a Little Less': The Political Context and Rights' Implications of the Domestic and European Rulings in the Venables-Thompson Case

In 1993 Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were found guilty of the abduction and murder of two-year-old James Bulger. Aged ten at the time of the offence, the children were tried in an adult court before a judge and jury amidst a blaze of publicity. They were named by the trial judge and sentenced to detention at Her Majesty's Pleasure [HMp]. The Home Secretary set a minimum tariff of fifteen years imprisonment. In December 1999 the European Court of Human Rights held that, in the conduct of the trial and the fixing of the tariff, the United Kingdom government was responsible for violating the European Convention on Human Rights. This article maps how the case became a watershed in youth justice procedure and practice influencing Labour's proposals for reform and the 1998 Crime and Disorder Act. Examining the progression of appeals through the domestic and European courts, it explores the dichotomous philosophies separating the United Kingdom and European approaches to the age of criminal responsibility, the prosecution and punishment of children, and the influence of political policy on judicial decisions. Finally, the 'backlash' against 'threatening children', the affirmation of adult power and knowledge, and the implications of the European judgments in the context of a rights-based agenda are analysed.     

American Skin: The Duke Lacrosse Rape Scandal and the Intersection of Race,Class, Gender,and Injustice

The Duke lacrosse team rape case showcased how race and the criminal justice system can intersect in troubling ways. This is not news to students of the history of race in America. What makes this case unusual is white men were the ones who were mistreated by the police, prosecutor, media, and others, all of who used the rape allegations to further their cause rather than to seek justice. This book review essay examines three recent books that describe and analyze the Duke scandal.     

Treating Adult Survivors of Sibling Sexual Abuse: A Relational Strengths-Based Approach

Sibling sexual abuse is a far more common manifestation of family violence than is often recognized. Researchers agree that it has received less attention than other forms of child abuse trauma despite the fact that good evidence suggests it is no less injurious than child sexual abuse when a parent or other adult is the perpetrator. This paper describes a relational, strengths-based approach to psychotherapy with adult survivors of sibling sexual abuse guided by trauma-informed principles. Cultural considerations are discussed as well as an overview of the clinical research on sibling sexual abuse and its harmful effects. Clinical case material, treatment strategies and a case illustration demonstrate therapeutic principles of the approach in action.