Home UK Young people charged with rape are much less likely to be convicted

Young people charged with rape are much less likely to be convicted

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Young people are less likely to be convicted of rape than older defendants, figures show.

Only 31.6% of men aged between 18 to 24 years old tried for rape in England and Wales were convicted in 2017-2018. In the same period, 45.6% of 25 to 59-year-old men were convicted.

The low conviction levels against young men are a challenge for the entire criminal justice system, prosecutors said.

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Juries are more sympathetic towards young men (Picture: Getty)

Various explanations have been put forward to explain the discrepancy in conviction rates.

Dr Dominic Willmott, of the University of Huddersfield, who has carried out extensive research into jury bias in sexual offence cases, said: Scientific research shows us quite clearly that jurors are simply less willing to convict young defendants of rape for fear of the consequences such a rapist label will have on their future.

The Crown Prosecution Service released the figures after a freedom of information request by Labour MP Ann Coffey.

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Ms Coffey suggested the figures showed a reluctance by juries to find young men guilty of date rape, saying they may be swayed by myths around rape such as that false allegations are common: The vast majority of rapes are never reported because many young women fear they will not be believed.

LONDON, APRIL 1: Ann Coffey, MP Labour Stockport. (Photo by Flying Colours/Getty Images)

Ann Coffey, MP Labour Stockport, said the figures showed the difficulties in prosecuting (Picture: Flying Colours/Getty Images)

Ms Coffey said: There is still a dominance of rape myths in our culture, including that a woman who has drunk a lot cannot complain if she ends up being raped or that it is only rape if someone has injuries or that most rapes are done by mad axemen in alleyways.

Of the 1,343 rape cases the CPS has taken against younger men in the period, only 404 were convicted, an average of 30%, according to the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW).

Sarah Green, a co-director of EVAW, said: These figures are shocking and, given that very few cases make it to court in the first place, they could be read as showing that there is near impunity in this country for young adult men who commit rape.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Bruce Adams/ANL/REX/Shutterstock (3878413a) Nazir Afzal Chief Prosecutor For North-west England Speaks After Sentencing - Tv Broadcaster Stuart Hall Appears For Sentencing At Preston Crown Court Lancs. Nazir Afzal Obe Chief Crown Prosecutor Cps North West. Nazir Afzal Chief Prosecutor For North-west England Speaks After Sentencing - Tv Broadcaster Stuart Hall Appears For Sentencing At Preston Crown Court Lancs. Nazir Afzal Obe Chief Crown Prosecutor Cps North West.

Nazir Afzal, former Chief Prosecutor For North-west England (Picture: Rex)

A CPS spokesman said: Rape and serious sexual offences can be some of the most complex cases prosecuted by the CPS.

We have worked hard in recent years to improve how we deal with these cases.

Addressing the low conviction after contest rate in cases involving young defendants represents a challenge for the entire criminal justice system.

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We are working on a number of different fronts to improve performance in this area.

This includes early liaison with police prior to making charging decisions, and providing specialist training for prosecutors on consent, myths and stereotypes, and cases involving vulnerable witnesses and young people.

Nazir Afzal, a former north-west England chief crown prosecutor and adviser to the Welsh government on violence against women, told The Guardian: Juries are told, rightfully, that you have to find not guilty if you are not sure and the perception is that the younger the victim is, the less believable you are.

Also, in my experience, juries are more likely to make allowances for a defendant the younger he is, this idea that he may not have known what he was doing at 24, but if he was older than that he does.

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