How criminal is it to rape a partner according to the justice system? Analysis of sentences in Spain (2015-2022)

Sexual violence in an intimate relationship is a less studied phenomenon than other forms of intimate partner violence, despite data pointing to a high prevalence. Studies on how the cases are sentenced are scarce. Until recently, many laws did not allow marital rape to be punished as a crime of rap...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Tamarit Sumalla, Maria Rosa, Romero Seseña, Pablo, Arantegui, Laura, Aizpitarte, Alazne
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
Repositorio:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
OAI Identifier:oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/150341
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10609/150341
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10610-023-09537-x
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:sexual offenses
criminal justice system
intimate partner sexual violence
judicial decision
rape
sexual assault
Descripción
Sumario:Sexual violence in an intimate relationship is a less studied phenomenon than other forms of intimate partner violence, despite data pointing to a high prevalence. Studies on how the cases are sentenced are scarce. Until recently, many laws did not allow marital rape to be punished as a crime of rape, and some studies showed a tendency for the courts to punish these cases less severely. The present study is based on an analysis of 964 rape cases of adult women in Spain. All the information was extracted from sentences of the Provincial Courts issued between 2015 and 2022. Results showed that significantly lower conviction rates and less severe penalties were imposed when the rape was committed by the intimate partner compared to other rape cases where the offenders were not partners (family members, acquaintances, or unknown strangers). The practical implications of these results in several areas are discussed.