05 August 2009

Can Rape Be A Joke? -- The Follow-Up...


In a follow-up to an earlier post that discussed this particular case and whether or not rape could be a joke, the jury has come back with a verdict. The rape itself might not have been a joke, but it seems that the jury has been convinced that it was accidental. The jury consisted of six men and six women and they took just shy of two hours to reach their verdict of "not guilty".

The prosecutor, Kieran Gilligan, instructed the jury that they must be satisfied that there was penetration, that is was deliberate, that there was no consent, and that Naggs knew that the man was not consenting to any penetration.

The man who claimed that he had been raped was a willing participant in the events and had said something to the effect of "Be gentle. Don't do it too hard." I am guessing that probably sealed it for most of the jurors.

The jury acquitted Naggs and she is free to return to what she has apparently been doing for the past thirteen years, and doing quite well by all accounts.

So, the lesson from this case would seem to be that rape is not a joke, but in a very particular set of circumstances a rape could be accidental and therefore not rape. I think.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I just don't think the outcome would have been the same if the genders were reversed. Accidental rape...Hmmmm, sorry luv I just slipped, Nay.

GJ

Rob Baiton said...

GJ...

It would make an interesting hypothetical argument. I guess though there needs to be a case to test the waters of a male stripper accidentally sticking the maid of honour.