Return to normal view

Rape Sentencing Statistics

14 Dec 2005

The Sentencing Advisory Council today released statistics on sentencing outcomes for persons sentenced for rape in Victoria between 1999/2000 and 2003/2004.

The report forms part of a series that present statistics on sentencing in Victoria. Earlier reports in the series analyse sentencing trends for murder, manslaughter and culpable driving causing death.

"Sentencing Snapshot No. 7 contains previously unpublished statistics on the gender and age of persons sentenced for rape, as well as the type of sentence imposed for the offence" said Council Chair Professor Arie Freiberg.

"For the first time, the Council has included information on compensation provided to victims of rape by the state's Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal" he said.

Sentencing Snapshot No. 7 reports that between 1999/00 and 2003/04 all people sentenced for rape were men, the majority of whom (87%) received a custodial sentence, including one man sentenced to imprisonment for an indefinite period.

In recent years, the proportion of offenders sentenced to imprisonment has increased, as have sentence lengths. In 2003/4 the average total effective sentence for men convicted of rape was 7 years and 8 months, with a non-parole period of 5 years, 5 months. Apart from the indefinite sentence, the longest total effective sentence was 22 years, 9 months.

Professor Freiberg pointed out that "in most cases people prosecuted for rape face multiple charges either for rape or for a range of related offences, and that sentence imposed for the offence of rape must be considered in this broader context".

In 2003/04, the Victims of Crime Compensation Tribunal granted 102 applications for compensation from victims of rape and approximately $6,000 was awarded to each victim on average.

Professor Freiberg called for anyone with an interest in the topic to read the paper.