University of SaskatchewanHARVEST
  • Login
  • Submit Your Work
  • About
    • About HARVEST
    • Guidelines
    • Browse
      • All of HARVEST
      • Communities & Collections
      • By Issue Date
      • Authors
      • Titles
      • Subjects
      • This Collection
      • By Issue Date
      • Authors
      • Titles
      • Subjects
    • My Account
      • Login
      JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.
      View Item 
      • HARVEST
      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations
      • View Item
      • HARVEST
      • Electronic Theses and Dissertations
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations
      • View Item

      Judicious judgments? : judicial definitions of sexual violence : examining the impact of sexual assault legislation

      Thumbnail
      View/Open
      Allison_md_1989.pdf (7.304Mb)
      Date
      1989
      Author
      Allison, Marni Dee
      Type
      Thesis
      Degree Level
      Masters
      Metadata
      Show full item record
      Abstract
      In an attempt to eradicate biases in substantive law and evidentiary procedures, legislative changes were implemented for sexual offences in 1983. Historically, biases in rape law had resulted in high attrition of cases at each stage of criminal justice processing, low conviction rates, and poor treatment of victims. The new legislation, which included the introduction of the offence 'sexual assault', was designed to emphasize the violent nature of sexual aggression rather than the sexual nature. Law reform, however, is influenced by the response of the criminal justice personnel who must implement the new legislation. Judges are critical personnel within this framework because they both implement the reform in individual court cases and interpret the meaning of the new law. It is critical, therefore, to examine judicial understanding of the social, political, and economic meaning of the law, and more specifically, to examine their understanding of the nature of sexual violence. Using a content analysis of 109 'remarks at sentencing', this study examines the impact of the 1983 reform on judicial definitions of sexual violence. The sentencing 'transcripts' are drawn from 66 sexual offence cases heard at the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan between 1975-1988. Transcripts are analyzed for the absence or presence of references to each of 9 themes (violence, coercion, physical impact of the offence on the victim, psychological impact of the offence on the victim, breach of trust, the significance of penetration, the accused's criminal history, the role of alcohol or drug abuse, and the accused's control over his sexual drive). Each theme reflects an influential variable in judicial decision-making concerning sexual offences. The results of the study indicated that since 1983,frequently and suggest that judges are attempting to reflect the 3 tier classification of sexual assault outlined in the new legislation. At the same time, however, judicial definitions of these variables continue to reflect stereotypes and myths associated with sexual violence. Judicial responses to sexual violence tend to minimize the culpability of sexual offenders and to minimize the seriousness of the offence. One of the most significant findings was that the 'sexual' element continues to dominate judicial definitions of sexual aggression rather than the 'violent' element. This emphasis implies that 'coercive' sexual acts have the same sexual character as 'consensual' sexual acts. It appears, therefore, that the reform has been unsuccessful in meeting its objectives at the judicial level. However, the small change which has occurred may lay the groundwork for further change in the future.
      Degree
      Master of Arts (M.A.)
      Department
      Sociology
      Program
      Sociology
      Committee
      Quigley, Tim; McPherson, Gerry; Biggs, C. Lesley; Storrie, Kathleen
      Copyright Date
      1989
      URI
      http://hdl.handle.net/10388/etd-03112008-114033
      Subject
      Sexual assault
      Sex crimes -- Law and legislation -- Saskatchewan
      Victims of sexual violence
      Violence towards women
      Sexual offence
      Rape law - Biases
      Rape -- Saskatchewan
      Collections
      • Graduate Theses and Dissertations

      Related items

      Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.

      • Sexual Health Knowledge and Attitudes of a Sample of Saskatchewan Post-Secondary Freshmen 

        Stauffer, (2015-02-05)
        The purpose of this study was to describe the sexual health knowledge and attitudes of a sample of Saskatchewan post secondary freshmen aged 17-19. Three primary questions guided this research: What do Saskatchewan freshmen ...
      • Unlocking desire : young women reflect on early experiences of sexual desire and the development of the sexual self 

        Espeseth, Nicole (2013-10-03)
        The goal of this research was to explore how young women make meaning of early experiences of sexual desire, and how these experiences contribute to the development of their sexual selves. The development of the sexual ...
      • Violence Risk Assessment with Youth Who Have Sexually Offended: A Psychometric Examination of the Violence Risk Scale: Youth Sexual Offender Version (VRS:YSO) 

        Rojas, Erika (2013-04-25)
        The present research was archival in nature. It was divided into three phases involving a comprehensive psychometric examination of a newly developed risk assessment measure designed to assess risk for sexual violence, ...
      University of Saskatchewan

      University Library

      © University of Saskatchewan
      Contact Us | Disclaimer | Privacy