LAWS 3306 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Statutory Rape, Actus Reus, Due Process
Document Summary
Hope of protecting young people was a justification to implement crime control. Statutory rape and vagrancy have been struck down. Purported to be in favour of due process rights of accused. What actually happened was that it resulted in higher incarceration. Packer suggested that incest and statutory rape were imaginary crime. Before the 70"s there were few references to issues of violence against youth. Reporting of crime against young skyrocketed in the 80"s. An explanation for this was that crimes within the home were never reported before. Of female and 1/3 males were victims of sexual act. 4/5 of those adults reported that the crime occurred when they were youth. Most of these cases went unreported, 3/4 females and 9/10 males did not report it. Parliament saw this and believed it needed to be addressed. Report said we needed more victim sensitive criminal sanction. They recommended broad and tough criminal offences for child abuse, pornography, and sexual abuse.