This petition was submitted during the 2015-2017 parliament
Petition Rape offences tried on the balance of probability NOT beyond reasonable doubt
In the UK the conviction rate for rape cases is 4% this is not encouraging for rape victims to come forward. It is extremely difficult to convince a jury to convict a perpetrator beyond all reasonable doubt this is why the numbers are so low I propose I change in the law to help victims of rape
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Statistics from The British Crime Survey reveal that 89% of rapes go unreported, and 38% of victims don’t tell anyone. It is unrealistic to assess a rape case beyond all reasonable doubt if the victim is known to the defendant or is the defendants partner etc this is virtually impossible as there will always be the argument of consensual sex therefore giving the element of doubt. 97% of calls to the Rape Crisis helpline are from victims who knew their attackers, if we try defendants based on the balance of probability we will have a better chance of convictions and will incourage more victims to come forward.
This petition closed early because of a General Election Find out more on the Petitions Committee website
35 signatures
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10,000 signatures required to get a government response