Sexual Assault Trials: Challenges and Innovations

In this in-depth exploration of the justice system's response to sexual assault, this book delves into the challenges faced by both victim-survivors and justice systems. Despite decades of government reviews, legislative reform and attempts to redress the systemic problems, justice systems have fallen well short of fixing the numerous problems that plague sexual assault trials. Many of the problems are common across Australia, New Zealand, England and Wales and other common law jurisdictions. This book draws together cutting-edge research from across Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand and Argentina, identifying challenges commonly faced, and presenting innovative ways of addressing the problems.

The authors assert that if reform of sexual assault trials is going to be effective it must better incorporate the victim’s perspective. Accordingly, the book focusses on the experience of victims in the justice system, from their first contact with police to the way in which lawyers question them in court. The book then examines measures like special witness protections and victim legal representation as a way to protect victims' rights and mitigate re-traumatisation. The book then shifts its focus to the pivotal role of juries, the impact of rape myths, the ‘detective juror’ and juror understanding of ‘proof beyond reasonable doubt’. Innovative techniques of informing and educating jurors so that they can manage the challenging subject matter of sexual assault trials are explained. 

There is no other book that contains such a wide-range of contemporary research on sexual assault trials. It features the work of a multidisciplinary team of highly experienced practitioners and researchers. The diverse authorship reflects the need to examine issues from multiple perspectives. Compelling ideas are presented for the courts, governments, legal practitioners, police and criminal justice researchers and teachers to engage with; with a view to challenging current practices. 

Features

• Features the work of a  multidisciplinary team of highly experienced practitioners and researchers

• Compelling ideas are presented for the courts, governments, legal practitioners, police and criminal justice researchers and teachers to engage with; with a view to challenging current practices

Related Titles

• Madden, Cockburn, Madden, Institutional abuse of children: Legal remedies and redress in Australia, 2nd edition