Official Reactions to Social Problems: Police Decisions in Sexual Assault Cases

A Match-and-Motivation Model of How Women Label Their Nonconsensual Sexual Experiences

“…In the 1980s, researchers identified widely held rape scripts in which rapists were ''losers'' with few social ties; victims had to be beyond reproach (not drinking alcohol, being alone with the man, or ''necking'' or ''petting''); rapists used extreme violence; and victims had to fight back valiantly (Burt, 1980;LaFree, 1981;LaFree, Reskin, & Visher, 1985;Ryan, 1988). Although researchers and activists have challenged these scripts recent research shows that these scripts persist (Ahrens, Cabral, & Abeling, 2009;Littleton, Breitkopf, & Berenson, 2007;Miller, Canales, Amacker, Backstrom, & Gidycz, 2011;Payne, Lonsway, & Fitzgerald, 1999;Phillips, 2000).…”

The influence of victim intoxication and victim attire on police responses to sexual assault

“…Where corroborating factors are present, such as bruising or evidence of a struggle, these assist police to decide whether or not to pursue a case of sexual assault. In their absence, credibility issues have a more substantial impact (Kerstetter, 1990;LaFree, 1981;McLean & Goodman-Delahunty, 2008;Rose & Randall, 1982). Further investigation is warranted of factors bearing on credibility judgements by police offi cers of victims of sexual assault that may infl uence police decisions regarding whether to proceed with a case.…”

The relationship of victim injury to the progression of sexual crimes through the criminal justice system

“…Firstly, the use of force and/or a weapon during a sexual crime is known to significantly increase the likelihood of prosecution [2][3][4][5][6]. The use of alcohol and/or drugs by the victim at the time of the assault significantly decreases the rate of case prosecution [6,7].…”