Sentencing practices for sexual assault: What are they?
Before entering into a discussion on the problems with sentencing practices, it is helpful to consider the current situation. Generally, when considering other “serious” offences (such as robbery, homicide and intentionally causing injury), sentences for sexual offences appear comparable both in terms of the statutory maximum and average length handed down to convicted offenders. Although sentencing legislation and practices vary across states, in comparison to other “serious” offences, the statutory maximum sentence for rape is among the longest. In Victoria, for example, the statutory maximum sentence for rape is 25 years. This is less than that of murder and drug trafficking (for which an offender may receive life imprisonment), is equivalent to aggravated robbery, and is higher than the maximum sentence for all other violent offences, such as intentionally causing serious injury and manslaughter (both hold statutory maximums of 20 years) (Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic.)). However, there
