The Process of Attrition in Child Sexual Assault Cases: A Case Flow Analysis of Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions
| Published date | 01 December 2002 |
| Author | Brian I. O'Toole,Heather Y. Swanston,R. Kim Oates,Sandra Shrimpton,Patrick N. Parkinson |
| Date | 01 December 2002 |
| DOI | 10.1375/acri.35.3.347 |
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THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY
VOLUME 35 NUMBER 3 2002 PP.347–362
Address for correspondence: Prof. P. Parkinson, Faculty of Law, the University of Sydney,
173–175 Phillip St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia. Email: patrickp@law.usyd.edu.au
The Process of Attrition in Child Sexual
Assault Cases: A Case Flow Analysis
of Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions
Patrick N. Parkinson
The University of Sydney,Australia
Sandra Shrimpton
The University of Sydney and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead,Australia
Heather Y. Swanston
The University of Sydney and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Australia
Brian I. O’Toole
The University of Sydney and The University of New South Wales, Australia
and R. Kim Oates
The University of Sydney and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Australia
A
s part of a prospective study which tracked 183 child sexual abuse
cases referred to two Child Protection Units in Sydney, NSW, a
search of court records was conducted to obtain criminal justice
outcomes. Of the 183 cases, there were 117 cases where the name of
the offender was known. Forty-five cases reached trial. Thirty-two cases
resulted in a conviction. A sub-cohort of 84 of the children and their
families was interviewed in detail to determine reasons why many cases
did not proceed down the track of criminal investigation and prosecu-
tion and why other cases dropped out of the criminal justice system.
Among this sub-cohort of 84 children, there were 67 cases where the
offender was identifiable and could have been charged.There were 25
convictions. Reasons for not proceeding to trial included: the offence was
not reported to police; parents wished to protect children, the perpetra-
tor or other family members; evidence was not strong enough to
warrant proceeding; the child was too young; the offender threatened
the family; or the child was too distressed.The implications for criminal
prosecution as a child protection strategy are considered in the light of
this evidence of attrition.
As community awareness of the prevalence of child sexual abuse has increased over
the last few years, there has been a substantial increase in many jurisdictions in the
number of prosecutions for sex offences against children. This has been facilitated
by law reforms which have altered the rules on admissibility of children’s evidence
and which have allowed alternative means for its reception, such as the use of
closed circuit television and videotaped evidence from the child (Richards, 2000).
Evidence from New South Wales indicates that the increased rate of prosecu-
tions has not led to a commensurate increase in the numbers of convictions for
child sexual assault. Cashmore (1995) found that the conviction rate in New South
Wales dropped sharply as the number of prosecutions increased. In 1992, the
number of cases accepted for prosecution was more than four times the number in
1982 (1992, 143 cases; 1982, 34 cases). During the same period, the guilty plea rate
dropped from 83.6% to 58% and the overall conviction rate fell from 92.3% to
76.5%. Thus while more prosecutions were being brought and with younger child
witnesses than might have been the case 10 years earlier, defendants were less likely
to plead guilty and the chances of obtaining a conviction declined. Gallagher,
Hickey and Ash (1997), in a study of all child sexual assault matters in the District
Court of NSW in 1994, found that the rate of convictions and guilty pleas had
fallen even further since 1992. Forty-nine per cent of alleged offenders pleaded
guilty. In total, 65% of alleged offenders were convicted on at least one charge.
P rosecution as a Child Protection Strategy
There has been some controversy about whether it is a desirable goal to prosecute
as many cases as possible. Some have argued that prosecutions are likely to be
traumatic for children and that societal benefits from successful prosecution should
not occur at the child’s expense (Newberger, 1987). Although not all cases are
suitable for prosecution, and the wishes of children and parents need to be
respected, arguably prosecution of offenders is an important strategy to combat
child sexual abuse, alongside other strategies. Successful prosecution provides a
means of reinforcing community condemnation of the crime, and may be a means
of mandating treatment. Criminal convictions are also important to efforts at
prevention of further abuse. Limited protection of the community is provided by
custodial sentences.
More importantly perhaps, criminal record checks provide a basis for other
prevention measures. Foster carers, youth workers, teachers, health workers, and
others who have unsupervised contact with children are subject to criminal record
checks in many jurisdictions, and some jurisdictions also place prohibitions on the
employment of convicted sex offenders in child-related work. A criminal record for
sex-offending against children also provides the basis for more controversial child
protection laws, such as sex-offender registration schemes, and community notifica-
tion statutes (Myers, 1996).
Given the efforts put into preparing cases for prosecution and the reliance
placed upon convictions as a child protection strategy, it is important to know what
proportion of cases which are considered to be substantiated on initial investigation
by professionals working in child protection result in successful prosecution, and
why cases do not proceed to prosecution or are dropped at various stages.
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P.N. PARKINSON,S. SHRIMPTON,H.Y.SWANSTON,B. I. O’TOOLE,AND R. KIM OATES
THE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY
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