Worth their while? Pursuing a rape complaint through the criminal justice system

If the criminal justice system were to advertise itself to victims of sexual violence, would its tag line be L'Oreal's 'Because you're worth it'? Or would the Foundry Premium Cider comment on the building of a pyramid: 'Twelve years in the making and it still doesn't taste very good' be more apposite? Certainly, a lack of faith in, or fear of, legal processes, is one of the reasons why eight out of nine women who are raped do not report the matter to the police.This article explores the extent to which victims' lack of faith in legal processes is warranted and asks if laying a complaint is worth the effort

Medico-Legal Findings, Legal Case Progression, and Outcomes in South African Rape Cases: Retrospective Review

Rachel Jewkes and colleagues examine the processing of rape cases by South African police and courts and show an association between documentation of ano-genital injuries, trials commencing, and convictions in rape cases

Characteristics of the rapes of children under 18 y by case outcome.

a<p>Only available if there was an arrest.</p

Logistic regression models showing associations between whether a trial started and the accused was found guilty and the medico-legal findings.

<p>Models 1 and 2 were adjusted for victim's age and whether a first witness statement was taken. Models 3 and 4 were adjusted for victim's age.</p><p>OR, odds ratio.</p

Attrition of rape cases in the criminal justice system and attrition in handling and processing of forensic evidence.

<p>Attrition of rape cases in the criminal justice system and attrition in handling and processing of forensic evidence.</p

Characteristics of the rapes of adult women by case outcome.

a<p>Only available if there was an arrest.</p