Queensland Rape Law "Loophole" Could Remain Open

Jonathan Crowe

Queensland Rape Law "Loophole" Could Remain Open

Jonathan Crowe

Research output: Contribution to journal › Online Resource › Research

Abstract

[Extract]
The Queensland government has quietly released the state Law Reform Commission’s long-awaited report on reforming the state’s controversial sexual consent laws.

After much lobbying by survivors of sexual assault for comprehensive changes to the law, the recommendations are a huge disappointment.

The QLRC review was prompted by concerns about the mistake of fact excuse in rape cases — what some have called a “loophole” that allows rapists to walk free.

Defendants in rape trials often argue the other person consented to sex. However, the mistake of fact excuse also allows defendants to argue they honestly and reasonably believed the other person consented to sex — even if that person did not. The excuse has been part of Queensland law since 1899.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license

Original language	English
Journal	National Interest
Publication status	Published - 5 Aug 2020

Access to Document

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/queensland-rape-law-loophole-could-remain-open-166208Licence: CC BY-ND

Queensland Rape Law “Loophole” Could Remain After Review Ignores Concerns About Rape Myths and Consent
Crowe, J., 4 Aug 2020, In: The Conversation.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Online Resource › Research

Open Access

Cite this

@article{474ac52b612a4e6baccc9aea71b599ca,

title = "Queensland Rape Law {"}Loophole{"} Could Remain Open",

abstract = "[Extract] The Queensland government has quietly released the state Law Reform Commission{\textquoteright}s long-awaited report on reforming the state{\textquoteright}s controversial sexual consent laws. After much lobbying by survivors of sexual assault for comprehensive changes to the law, the recommendations are a huge disappointment. The QLRC review was prompted by concerns about the mistake of fact excuse in rape cases — what some have called a “loophole” that allows rapists to walk free. Defendants in rape trials often argue the other person consented to sex. However, the mistake of fact excuse also allows defendants to argue they honestly and reasonably believed the other person consented to sex — even if that person did not. The excuse has been part of Queensland law since 1899. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license",

author = "Jonathan Crowe",

note = "This was a reprint of the Conversation article on August 4, 2020.",

year = "2020",

month = aug,

day = "5",

language = "English",

journal = "National Interest",

issn = "0884-9382",

publisher = "National Interest",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Queensland Rape Law "Loophole" Could Remain Open

AU - Crowe, Jonathan

N1 - This was a reprint of the Conversation article on August 4, 2020.

PY - 2020/8/5

Y1 - 2020/8/5

N2 - [Extract] The Queensland government has quietly released the state Law Reform Commission’s long-awaited report on reforming the state’s controversial sexual consent laws. After much lobbying by survivors of sexual assault for comprehensive changes to the law, the recommendations are a huge disappointment. The QLRC review was prompted by concerns about the mistake of fact excuse in rape cases — what some have called a “loophole” that allows rapists to walk free. Defendants in rape trials often argue the other person consented to sex. However, the mistake of fact excuse also allows defendants to argue they honestly and reasonably believed the other person consented to sex — even if that person did not. The excuse has been part of Queensland law since 1899. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license

AB - [Extract] The Queensland government has quietly released the state Law Reform Commission’s long-awaited report on reforming the state’s controversial sexual consent laws. After much lobbying by survivors of sexual assault for comprehensive changes to the law, the recommendations are a huge disappointment. The QLRC review was prompted by concerns about the mistake of fact excuse in rape cases — what some have called a “loophole” that allows rapists to walk free. Defendants in rape trials often argue the other person consented to sex. However, the mistake of fact excuse also allows defendants to argue they honestly and reasonably believed the other person consented to sex — even if that person did not. The excuse has been part of Queensland law since 1899. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license

M3 - Online Resource

SN - 0884-9382

JO - National Interest

JF - National Interest

ER -

Queensland Rape Law "Loophole" Could Remain Open

Abstract

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Related Research Outputs

Queensland Rape Law “Loophole” Could Remain After Review Ignores Concerns About Rape Myths and Consent

Cite this