ABSTRACT

Severe levels of attrition in rape cases within the criminal justice system are widely recognised. Previous reviews (e.g. Hohl & Stanko, 2015 Hohl, K., & Stanko, E. A. (2015). Complaints of rape and the criminal justice system: Fresh evidence on the attrition problem in England and Wales. European Journal of Criminology, 12(3), 324–341. https://doi.org/10.1177/1477370815571949[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]. Complaints of rape and the criminal justice system: Fresh evidence on the attrition problem in England and Wales. European Journal of Criminology, 12(3), 324–341) have provided information on the general profile of cases, their outcomes, and the relationship between the two, in attempts to understand these patterns. However, recent changes to the landscape of rape investigation (e.g. the impact of technology) justify a more contemporary assessment. The present study coded 446 cases of rape reported in London in April 2016, on a variety of victim, suspect, offence, and procedural characteristics, as well as case outcomes. We conducted descriptive analyses of case profiles and inferential examinations of the relationship between case characteristics and outcomes. Findings suggest the profile of victims, suspects, and the context of offences has remained mostly similar, with some noticeable changes (e.g. a larger array of victim vulnerabilities). Moreover, several existing, exacerbated, as well as novel procedural challenges present (e.g. delay due to workload, third party materials). Additionally, many rape-myth related case factors no longer predict case outcomes and officers instead may now engage in greater ‘downstream’ orientation, and anticipation of case uptake, when evaluating cases. Recommendations for policy and practice are discussed.

摘要

刑事司法系统内强奸案件的严重减员程度已得到广泛认可。以前的评论（例如 Hohl 和 Stanko，2015 年 Hohl, K.和Stanko, EA（2015 年）。强奸和刑事司法系统的投诉：英格兰和威尔士自然减员问题的新证据。欧洲犯罪学杂志，12（3），324 – 341。https://doi.org/10.1177/1477370815571949 [Crossref]、[Web of Science®]、 [Google Scholar]。强奸和刑事司法系统的投诉：英格兰和威尔士自然减员问题的新证据。欧洲犯罪学杂志,12(3), 324–341) 提供了关于案例的一般概况、结果以及两者之间的关系的信息，以试图理解这些模式。然而，最近强奸调查领域的变化（例如技术的影响）证明了更现代的评估是合理的。本研究对 2016 年 4 月在伦敦报告的 446 起强奸案进行了编码，涉及各种受害者、嫌疑人、犯罪和程序特征，以及案件结果。我们对病例概况进行了描述性分析，并对病例特征与结果之间的关系进行了推理检查。调查结果表明，受害者、嫌疑人的概况和犯罪背景大体保持相似，但有一些明显的变化（例如，更多的受害者漏洞）。此外，一些现有的、加剧的、以及出现的新程序挑战（例如由于工作量、第三方材料造成的延迟）。此外，许多与强奸神话相关的案件因素不再预测案件结果，而在评估案件时，官员现在可能会更多地关注“下游”导向和案件受理情况。讨论了政策和实践的建议。