THE LONG ROAD TO JUSTICE
The estimated number of victims of rape and sexual assault is 100 times higher than the number of convictions.
That’s according to a new analysis by the Office for National Statistics, which shows how and when - cases drop out of the criminal justice system.
THE OFFENCE
Approximately 107,000 people in England and Wales were victims of rape, and 668,000 were victims of another sexual offence in 2017/18.
But the majority of these cases did not enter the criminal justice system at all - with fewer than one in five (17 per cent) victims of rape or assault by penetration reporting their experience to the police.
Victims were most likely to say that they did not report the incident to police out of embarrassment (44 per cent).
THE REPORT
The number of sexual offences recorded by the police has nearly tripled in recent years, likely down to a combination of better police recording and more victims being willing to come forward.
However, the number of offences recorded remains well below the number of victims - and in many cases they don’t progress any further.
In the year ending March 2018, there were 69,901 rape incidents reported to the police in England and Wales.
Of these, 11,913 remained as incidents and were not recorded as crimes.
Most of these cases (58 per cent) were dropped because the victim didn’t confirm the offence or couldn’t be traced.
Only 13 per cent were dropped because of credible evidence that the rape did not occur.
THE SUMMONS
Even if a case is recorded as a crime, it is still unlikely to end up in court.
Just over half of all sexual offences recorded as crimes didn’ t go further through the criminal justice system due to evidential difficulties.
Only six per cent of sexual offences had been assigned the outcome of “charge or summons” at the time of analysis.
No suspect was identified in 15 per cent of offences, and the rest of the cases didn’t proceed further for a variety of reasons including the suspect, victim or witness dying or being too ill.
THE CONVICTION
Even when a case overcomes all these hurdles to end up in court, there is still a chance that it won’t end with a conviction - especially if it is a rape case.
More than two in every five rape prosecutions (42 per cent) saw the defendant found not guilty in 2017/18, alongside one in every five sexual offences prosecutions.
Alexa Bradley, of the Centre for Crime and Justice at the ONS said: “We have brought together data from different sources to show the path of sexual offences through the criminal justice system.
“Looking at these together, it’s apparent that the majority of victims don’t report the offence to the police.
“The report highlights that investigating sexual offences is challenging. Many offences don’t proceed further than the police investigation due to evidential difficulties.
“In addition, investigations are becoming more complex due to an increase in evidence from phones, tablets, computers and social media.
“We hope that providing insights into this serious issue will assist all those working to achieve better outcomes for victims.”