Average penalty 'too low'

Press, 15 December 1983, Page 30

Average penalty 'too low'

Parliamentary reporter The Rape Reform Bill is intended by the Government to “flag” for the courts the principle that rape should always be punished by a prison term, unless there are unusual circumstances. Much concern had been expressed recently about penalties for rape, said the Minister of Justice, Mr McLay. It had been asked whether the maximum penalty was high enough, and whether there ought to be a minimum penalty. Minimum penalties were not generally favoured, he

said, because they limited . the power of the court to do justice in a particular case, and also tempted a jury to acquit if it felt that the minimum penalty was too high or too harsh for a particular case. Nevertheless there was a widespread belief, which he shared, that the average penalty until recently of a little more than four years jail for rape was far too low. Section 1288 “flagged’’ for the courts society’s wishes. It has two sub-clauses: © Everyone who commits rape is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceed-

ing 14 years. @ Everyone who is convicted of rape shall be sentenced to imprisonment unless, having regard to the particular circumstances of the offence or of the offender, the court is of the

opinion that the offender should not be so sentenced. But it was a fact that the seriousness of rape meant that a sentence of imprisonment was almost always imposed now, Mr McLay said.