Defining and Conceptualising DrugAssisted Rape and Sexual Assault

1
Defining and Conceptualising Drug-Assisted Rape
and Sexual Assault

• Alcohol and Drugs in Sexual Assault
• St Marys Centre Annual Conference
• 28th September 2004
• Miranda Horvath Jennifer Brown

2
Aims of the Presentation

• Importance of the definition
• Sources of the definition
• Findings of exploratory research
• A new definition

3
Continuum or distinctive pathology
4
Currently

• Disparity in definitions posed by
• Researchers
• Complainant Support Groups
• The Law
• Why is the definition important?
• Why is the disparity a problem?

5

• The law / legal definitions
• Research definitions

6
Sexual Offences Act 2003

• (came into force 1st May 2004)
• Chapter 42, Part 1 Rape
• Chapter 42, Part 3 Sexual Assault
• S.61 Administering a Substance with Intent

7
Rape and Sexual AssaultLegal Principles

• Consent
• Reasonableness (Context)
• Intention

8
Administering a Substance With Intent

• A person commits an offence if he intentionally
  administers a substance to, or causes a substance
  to be taken by, another person (B) -
• knowing that B does not consent, and
• with the intention of stupefying or overpowering
  B, so as to enable any person to engage in a
  sexual activity that involves B.

9
Sturman (2000)

• Drug-assisted rape and sexual assault is
• Where a person has sexual intercourse (as defined
  under the Sexual Offences Act 1956 as amended),
  with a person
• - After administering, being party to the
  administration or being aware of the
  administration of a drug or noxious substance,
  (including alcohol), to that person, thereby
  interfering with that persons ability to consent.

10
Operation Matise (2004)

• An incident of rape or other sexual assault in
  which the victims capacity to consent is
  impaired by the involuntary administration of a
  drug including alcohol by the assailant. As with
  all types of rape and sexual assault, the victims
  can be female or male, of any age or class, and
  across all ethnic groups.

11
Conceptualisation Research Data Phase 1

• 4 male, 4 female members of the general public
• 21 sorting cards containing the names of types of
  sexual and romantic encounters.
• Participants completed as many free sorts as they
  could think of criteria to sort the cards on
• Procrustean Individual dimensional scaling
  (PINDIS) used to analyse the sorts

12
(No Transcript)
13
Phase 1 Findings

• All rape behaviours clearly distinguishable from
  other methods of negotiating sexual encounters
• Rape motivation and plan qualitatively different
  to other behaviours
• Key factors for distinguishing behaviours
  Consent planning impulsivity asymmetric
  behaviour interaction.

14
Phase 2

• 4 male, 4 female members of general public
• 16 sorting cards used containing the names of
  specific sexual practices
• Participants completed as many free sorts as they
  could think of criteria to sort the cards on
• Procrustean Individual dimensional scaling
  (PINDIS) used to analyse the sorts

15
(No Transcript)
16
Phase 2 Findings

• 3 key factors distinguish sexual behaviours
  Legality - Social Acceptability - Consent
• Drug-assisted rape is
• illegal abhorrent a serious societal problem
• similar to other rapes paedophilia necrophilia
  bestiality in terms of complainant/offender
  relationship
• - most similar to necrophilia in terms of
  offenders motivation.

17
Phase 3

• Intention
• Victim selection
• Victim Characteristics e.g. blonde hair
• Victim behaviour e.g. walking alone at night
• Being intoxicated or drugged

18
Summary of Findings

• Research
• Motivation
• Consent
• Social Acceptability
• Planning

• Law
• Intention
• Consent
• Reasonableness

19
Drug-Assisted Rape and Sexual Assault

• At the time the rape or sexual assault (as
  defined under local laws) occurred the person
  causing it to happen (the accused) did not
  reasonably believe that the other had the
  capacity to consent to the sexual act and that
  person (the complainant) did not have the
  capacity to consent or did not give valid consent
  and, in all cases, was immediately prior to and
  during the sexual act under the influence of a
  substance or substances, taken (in)voluntarily as
  a result of administration by the accused or an
  accomplice which did (or were likely to, have
  rendered) the victim physically and/or mentally
  incapable of resisting the sexual act.

20
Drug-Facilitated Rape and Sexual Assault

• At the time the rape or sexual assault occurred,
  the person(s) causing it to happen had
  incapacitated the other's ability to consent to
  the sexual act by intentionally introducing a
  substance or substances which did (or were likely
  to render) the victim physically and/or mentally
  incapable of resisting the rape or sexual assault
  or vicariously exploiting a situation where a
  victim was so incapacitated.

21

• Comments, Questions, Feedback?