Good character references in rape cases to be restricted

Good character references in rape cases to be restricted

‘No one wants to hear that a rapist is (an) all-round great person.’

Queensland To Restrict Good Character References In Sentencing Of Accused Rapists

.cls-1{fill:#000000;}.cls-2{fill:#fff50d;fill-rule:evenodd;} CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses rape and sexual assault. The consideration of good character references for accused rapists will now be restricted under major Queensland court reforms, as was recommended earlier this year by a Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council (QSAC) report into rape and sexual assault. Good character references, written by friends and families of th…

Is It Time to Abolish (Or Reform) The Good Character Requirement?

My last Slaw column discussed two recent cases in which Ontario’s Law Society Tribunal found individuals who had previously engaged in sexual misconduct involving minors were currently “of good character”. The findings in those cases, AA and Colangelo, have since been (repeatedly) upheld on appeal.[1] Unsurprisingly, these decisions were controversial in the court of public opinion (sample Toronto Star comment: “When your [sic] a member of a gov…