Rape: Prosecutions
(asked on 4th September 2017) - View Source
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, how many times (a) victims have withdrawn support for a prosecution of an alleged rape under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 case and (b) the Crown Prosecution Service has decided not to continue with the prosecution of an alleged rape following the withdrawal of such support in each year since 2009-10.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of victims who have withdrawn support for a prosecution or the number of cases the CPS has then subsequently decided not to proceed with. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.
However, while the CPS does not collect data on the number of victims who withdraw support for the prosecution, or cases which do not proceed following the withdrawal of such support, information is available to show the overall number of pre-charge decisions where a decision not to prosecute was made and unsuccessful prosecution outcomes that were flagged as rape. These outcomes can be disaggregated to show the volume and proportion that were due to victim issues, including retraction, where it was inappropriate to compel the victim, non-attendance at trial or where the evidence given did not come up to proof.
The CPS monitoring of cases involving offences of rape involves the application of a rape ‘flag’ to applicable cases that are recorded on the CPS’ electronic Case Management System (CMS). The CPS definition of rape covers any case where the following offences were considered pre-charge or were subsequently charged:
- Rape: Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956
- Sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 13: Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956
- Rape: Section 1 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
- Rape of a child under 13: Section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
- Sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder impeding choice: Section 30(3) of the Sexual Offences Act 2003
- An attempt to commit any of the above offences under the Criminal Attempts Act 1981
- Incitement or conspiracy to commit any of the above offences.
The table below shows the volume and proportion of decisions not to prosecute due to victim issues in cases flagged as rape during each of the last seven available years.
Victim Issues | No Prosecution | Charged | Total | ||||
Volume | % | Volume | % | Volume | % | ||
2009-2010 | 291 | 3.8% | 4,165 | 54.2% | 3,232 | 42.1% | 7,683 |
2010-2011 | 299 | 3.7% | 4,339 | 53.4% | 3,387 | 41.7% | 8,130 |
2011-2012 | 190 | 2.8% | 3,281 | 48.1% | 3,213 | 47.1% | 6,822 |
2012-2013 | 113 | 2.1% | 2,195 | 40.6% | 2,889 | 53.5% | 5,404 |
2013-2014 | 158 | 2.7% | 1,857 | 31.7% | 3,621 | 61.9% | 5,850 |
2014-2015 | 189 | 3.1% | 1,997 | 32.4% | 3,648 | 59.2% | 6,159 |
2015-2016 | 181 | 2.6% | 2,271 | 33.1% | 3,910 | 57.0% | 6,855 |
Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System | |||||||
Victim issues include cases where the victim is called as a witness in a trial, but fails to attend court; where the evidence of the victim supports the prosecution case but the victim refuses to be called as a witness, or retracts, or withdraws a complaint; and where the evidence of the victim does not support the prosecution of the defendant, leading to an unsuccessful outcome, but the victim however, has not retracted.
The CPS will shortly be publishing its annual Violence Against Women and Girls Report for 2016-17 which will provide the most up to date assessment of rape flagged prosecutions including the key reasons for unsuccessful prosecutions.