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Sexual Assault Of Women And Adolescent Girls With Mental Disabilities, Janine Benedet, Isabel Grant
Sexual Assault Of Women And Adolescent Girls With Mental Disabilities, Janine Benedet, Isabel Grant
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This Report considers the research that addresses the sexual assault of women (age 18+) and adolescent girls (12-17) with mental disabilities (disabilities that affect cognition and decision-making, including intellectual disabilities present from birth, dementia, brain injury and certain psychiatric conditions.) These victims are targeted for sexual violence at rates even higher than for women generally. Yet when these women report abuse to authorities, the criminal trial process struggles to provide them with justice, while the consequences of disclosure can be severe and participation in the criminal justice process particularly traumatizing for them.
The "Statutory Rape" Myth: A Case Law Study Of Sexual Assaults Against Adolescent Girls, Isabel Grant, Janine Benedet
The "Statutory Rape" Myth: A Case Law Study Of Sexual Assaults Against Adolescent Girls, Isabel Grant, Janine Benedet
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This article examines three years of Canadian case law involving sexual offences against adolescent girls between the ages of twelve and seventeen inclusive, with a view to identifying the types of cases that are making it to court, whether these cases are resulting in convictions, and what are the types of sentences being imposed on individuals convicted of these offences. A significant majority of cases under review involved men considerably older than the complainant. The average age difference between the accused and the complainant was nineteen years and, where family members were excluded, 15.6 years. The small number of cases …
Confronting The Sexual Assault Of Teenage Girls: The Mistake Of Age Defence In Canadian Sexual Assault Law, Isabel Grant, Janine Benedet
Confronting The Sexual Assault Of Teenage Girls: The Mistake Of Age Defence In Canadian Sexual Assault Law, Isabel Grant, Janine Benedet
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Teenage girls experience high rates of sexual assault. The Criminal Code permits the Crown to substitute proof of young age for proof of non-consent for sexual assault and related offences applicable to young complainants. This paper focuses on the defence of mistaken belief in age. It provides a defence where the accused honestly believed that the complainant was at or above the age of consent and where the accused took all reasonable steps to ascertain her age. A review of the cases considering the defence indicates that it is often applied incorrectly, where the accused does not have any belief …
Henry V. British Columbia: Still Seeking A Just Approach To Damages For Wrongful Conviction, Emma Cunliffe
Henry V. British Columbia: Still Seeking A Just Approach To Damages For Wrongful Conviction, Emma Cunliffe
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Henry v. British Columbia (Attorney General) was the first case in which a claimant sought damages under section 24(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms for breaches of rights that led to a wrongful conviction and imprisonment. In its 2015 decision, the Supreme Court of Canada clarified the criteria for the award and quantum of such damages. In June 2016, Hinkson C.J.S.C. awarded $8,086,691.80 in damages to Ivan Henry in compensation, special damages and “to serve both the vindication and deterrence functions of s. 24(1) of the Charter”.
In this article, I describe the events that led to …