Community attitudes and laws have changed when it comes to sexual assault and how victim-survivors behave. Yet rape myths still have power – both in and out of the courtroom
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Twelve Australians had spent about a week together poring over endless hours of evidence in a Sydney court when a note was sent to the judge.
On it was a question that offered a rare insight into how the jury – whose deliberations remain private under law – was weighing the credibility of a woman’s claim she had been raped, and whether a man was innocent or guilty of the crime. It asked: if a person accusing someone of rape voluntarily takes drugs or drinks alcohol, are they then accountable for the actions of the accused?
