We’re repeatedly told that juries only convict in “real rape” cases with “ideal victims.” Episode 3 of Criminal Justice in Action: Rape on Trial continues to challenges those assumptions.
We're back in Crown Court for the trial of Jerome, accused of robbing five women and raping one. The complainants are sex workers, and the conduct of the trial — and its outcome — raise important questions about the prominence and impact of rape myths and gender stereotypes in rape trials, and how courtroom practice and jury decision-making are portrayed in the mainstream, public narrative about rape in the criminal process.