Interpretation
s.2 Criminal Evidence Act 1992
(Amended by s.34 Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017
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“sexual offence” means
rape,
sexual assault (within the meaning of section 2 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990), aggravated sexual assault (within the meaning of section 3 of that Act),
rape under section 4 of that Act or an offence under—
(a) section 3 or 6 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885
(b) section 5 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993
(c) section 6 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993
(d) section 1 or 2 of the Punishment of Incest Act 1908,
(e) section 4A or 5A of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998,
(f) section 249 of the Children Act 2001,
(g) the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006, or
(h) section 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017, excluding an attempt to commit any such offence.
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Definition of Consent
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Under 9. Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act, 1990
Amended by s.48 Criminal Law (Sexual Offences ) Act 2017
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(1) A person consents to a sexual act if he or she freely and voluntarily agrees to engage in that act.
(2) A person does not consent to a sexual act if—
(a) he or she permits the act to take place or submits to it because of the application of force to him or her or to some other person, or because of the threat of the application of force to him or her or to some other person, or because of a well-founded fear that force may be applied to him or her or to some other person,
(b) he or she is asleep or unconscious,
(c) he or she is incapable of consenting because of the effect of alcohol or some other drug,
(d) he or she is suffering from a physical disability which prevents him or her from communicating whether he or she agrees to the act,
(e) he or she is mistaken as to the nature and purpose of the act,
(f) he or she is mistaken as to the identity of any other person involved in the act,
(g) he or she is being unlawfully detained at the time at which the act takes place,
(h) the only expression or indication of consent or agreement to the act comes from somebody other than the person himself or herself.
(3) This section does not limit the circumstances in which it may be established that a person did not consent to a sexual act.
(4) Consent to a sexual act may be withdrawn at any time before the act begins, or in the case of a continuing act, while the act is taking place.
(5) Any failure or omission on the part of a person to offer resistance to an act does not of itself constitute consent to that act.
(6) In this section—
“sexual act” means—
(a) an act consisting of—
(i) sexual intercourse, or
(ii) buggery,
(b) an act described in section 3(1) or 4(1) of this Act, or
(c) an act which if done without consent would constitute a sexual assault;
“sexual intercourse” shall be construed in accordance with section 1(2) of the Principal Act.
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PART III
EVIDENCE IN CERTAIN PROCEEDINGS
12. Interpretation and application - Part III
(1) In this Part—
“family member”, in relation to a victim, means—
(a) a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant of the victim,
(b) a child or step-child of the victim,
(c) a parent or grandparent of the victim,
(d) a brother, sister, half brother or half sister of the victim,
(e) a grandchild of the victim,
(f) an aunt, uncle, nephew or niece of the victim, and
(g) any other person—
(i) who is or, where the victim is deceased, was dependent on the victim, or
(ii) who a court considers has or, where the victim is deceased, had a sufficiently close connection with the victim as to warrant his or her being treated as a family member;
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“relevant offence” means—
(a) a sexual offence;
(b) an offence involving violence or the threat of violence to a person;
(c) an offence under section 3, 4, 5 or 6 of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998;
(d) an offence under section 2, 4 or 7 of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008;
[(da) an offence under section 33, 38 or 39 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018;]
(e) an offence consisting of attempting or conspiring to commit, or of aiding or abetting, counselling, procuring or inciting the commission of, an offence mentioned in paragraph (a), (b), [(c), (d) or (da)];
“victim” means—
(a) a natural person, other than an accused, who has suffered harm, including physical, mental or emotional harm, or economic loss, which was directly caused by an offence, and
(b) where the death of a person referred to in paragraph (a) is caused directly by the offence, a family member, provided that the family member concerned has not been charged with, or is not under investigation for, an offence in connection with the death of the person.
(2) The application of this Part is not dependent on the commission of an offence having to be established (nor is it dependent on establishing whether the person concerned suffered any harm caused by an offence).
'Sexual offence ’ means:
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Rape
(Criminal Law (Rape) Act, 1981
2. Meaning of “rape”
(1) A man commits rape if—
(a) he has […] sexual intercourse with a woman who at the time of the intercourse does not consent to it, and
(b) at that time he knows that she does not consent to the intercourse or he is reckless as to whether she does or does not consent to it)
and references to rape in this Act and any other enactment shall be construed accordingly
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sexual assault (within the meaning of section 2 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990 )
(2.(1) The offence of indecent assault upon any male person and the offence of indecent assault upon any female person shall be known as sexual assault )
aggravated sexual assault (within the meaning of section 3 of that Act),
(3 (1) In this Act “aggravated sexual assault” means a sexual assault that involves serious violence or the threat of serious violence or is such as to cause injury, humiliation or degradation of a grave nature to the person assaulted.)
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rape under section 4 of that Act
(4(1) In this Act “rape under section 4” means a sexual assault that includes—
(a) penetration (however slight) of the anus or mouth by the penis, or
(b) penetration (however slight) of the vagina by any object held or manipulated by another person.)
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or an offence under —
( a ) section 3 or 6 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 ,
3. Procuring defilement of woman by threats or fraud or administering drugs
6. Householder, etc permitting defilement of young girl on his premises
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( b ) section 5 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993 ,
(Section 5 repealed by s.24 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 )
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( c ) section 6 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993 ,
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(Section 6 repealed by s.24 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 )
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( d ) section 1 or 2 of the Punishment of Incest Act 1908
1. Incest by males
2. Incest by females of or over 17
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( e ) section 4A or 5A of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998 ,
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4(1) A person who-
(a) controls or directs the activities of a child for the purposes of the prostitution of the child or the use of the child for the production of child pornography,
(b) organises the prostitution of children or the production of child pornography by controlling or directing the activities of more than one child for those purposes,
(c) compels, coerces or recruits a child to engage or participate in child prostitution or the production of child pornography,
(d) knowingly gains from the prostitution of a child or the production of child pornography, or(e) incites or causes a child to become involved in child prostitution or production of child pornography, shall be
5A or now s 5 (as substituted by s.12 the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017
guilty of an offence.
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(1) Subject to subsections (3) and (4) of section 6, a person who —
(a) knowingly produces any child pornography,
(b) knowingly distributes, transmits, disseminates, prints or publishes any child pornography,
(c) knowingly imports, exports, sells or shows any child pornography,
(d) knowingly supplies or makes available any child pornography to another person,
(e) knowingly publishes, distributes, transmits or disseminates any advertisement likely to be understood as conveying that the advertiser or any other person produces, distributes, transmits, disseminates, prints, publishes, imports, exports, sells, shows, supplies or makes available any child pornography,
(f) encourages, knowingly causes or facilitates any activity mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (e), or
(g) knowingly possesses any child pornography for the purpose of distributing, transmitting, disseminating, publishing, exporting, selling or showing it,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—
(i) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both, or
(ii) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years or both.
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( f ) section 249 of the Children Act 2001
s.249 Causing or encouraging sexual offence upon child
(1) A person is guilty of an offence if, having the custody, charge or care of a child, he or she causes or encourages unlawful sexual intercourse or buggery with the child or causes or encourages the seduction or prostitution of, or a sexual assault on, the child.
( g ) the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006
s. 2 Defilement of child under 15 years of age
s. 3 Defilement of child under the age of 17 years
s. 3A Defilement of child under the age of 17 years
, or
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( h ) section 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 or 8 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017,
(s. 3 Obtaining, providing etc. a child for purpose of sexual exploitation
s. 4 Invitation etc. to sexual touching
s. 5 Sexual activity in presence of child
s. 6 Causing child to watch sexual activity
s. 7 Meeting child for purpose of sexual exploitation
s. 8 Use of information and communication technology to facilitate sexual exploitation of child)
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excluding an attempt to commit any such offence.
(this is included for drafting reasons as certain sections have this provision and certain sections do not.)
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