Increase the sentence starting point for rape to 15 years in England and Wales
Increase the sentence starting point for rape to 15 years in England and Wales
The Issue
Currently in England and Wales there is no minimum custodial sentence for rape offences. Instead, the Sentencing Council have created guidelines for for courts to follow. For rape offences, there are starting points which courts can then alter based on a variety of factors.
The guidelines state that for rape of a victim over 16 years of age the starting point is 5 years. For children under 13, it's only 10 years. For multiple victims it's 15 years.
Rape is completely forbidden by several different areas of our basic human rights. Most, if not all communities, organisations, and religions have completely denounced it, saying that it's completely against their foundations.
No matter how many rape offences a person committed, they leave their victims scarred for life. In the UK, the NHS is under pressure, and waiting lists for counselling are huge. For one victim which I know, it took six months in order for them to get it, and even then they are still in early days.
Six months is a long time to wait for starting the recovery process, and a victim could experience flashbacks and panic attacks for the rest of their lives even after counselling. Often victims have to change everything about themselves, from their hair to their personality, in order to have a chance of being able to continue. Victims may also get STIs, and these can and will affect them for the rest of their lives.
Rapists are sometimes repeat offenders, and 5 years does not provide any security or hope for the victim who deserves justice for the suffering they have to go through. By raising the guideline for all rape cases to 15 years (which is the highest guideline for rape currently) the chance of repeat offence is lowered, and the victim feels a little more secure and safer, and therefore they are able to recover as much as possible.
Severity (like the number of offences) should be a factor influencing the final sentence, not the starting point. Just like murder, rape infringes our basic human rights, hence why I think the starting point should be high and identical for all cases.
The Issue
Currently in England and Wales there is no minimum custodial sentence for rape offences. Instead, the Sentencing Council have created guidelines for for courts to follow. For rape offences, there are starting points which courts can then alter based on a variety of factors.
The guidelines state that for rape of a victim over 16 years of age the starting point is 5 years. For children under 13, it's only 10 years. For multiple victims it's 15 years.
Rape is completely forbidden by several different areas of our basic human rights. Most, if not all communities, organisations, and religions have completely denounced it, saying that it's completely against their foundations.
No matter how many rape offences a person committed, they leave their victims scarred for life. In the UK, the NHS is under pressure, and waiting lists for counselling are huge. For one victim which I know, it took six months in order for them to get it, and even then they are still in early days.
Six months is a long time to wait for starting the recovery process, and a victim could experience flashbacks and panic attacks for the rest of their lives even after counselling. Often victims have to change everything about themselves, from their hair to their personality, in order to have a chance of being able to continue. Victims may also get STIs, and these can and will affect them for the rest of their lives.
Rapists are sometimes repeat offenders, and 5 years does not provide any security or hope for the victim who deserves justice for the suffering they have to go through. By raising the guideline for all rape cases to 15 years (which is the highest guideline for rape currently) the chance of repeat offence is lowered, and the victim feels a little more secure and safer, and therefore they are able to recover as much as possible.
Severity (like the number of offences) should be a factor influencing the final sentence, not the starting point. Just like murder, rape infringes our basic human rights, hence why I think the starting point should be high and identical for all cases.
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The Decision Makers
Petition created on 17 July 2016