The Promotion Exams
| Published date | 01 June 1964 |
| Author | J. Daniel Devlin |
| Date | 01 June 1964 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X6403700609 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
SUPERINTENDENT
J.
DANIEL
DEVLIN,
LL.B.
Of
the Southend-on-Sea Constabulary and the Directing
Staff
of
the
Police College
The eighteenth and, for the time being, the last
of
a series
of
articles
of
interest to examination candidates and all concerned with training.
THE
PROMOTION
EXAMS
XVIII
•••
SEXUAL OFFENCES (concluded)
In this article we shall deal with defilement, trading in prostitu-
tion, soliciting by men, and suppression of brothels.
DEFILEMENT
The term " defilement" is not now used in the statute,
but
it is a
convenient way to describe those crimes which are committed by
persons who permit girls to use premises for intercourse. There are
three offences: in respect of girls under 13 (s. 25); of girls between
13
and
16(s. 26);
and
of defectives (s. 27).
The crime first mentioned is a very serious offence.
It
is a felony
and
one of the four felonies punishable under the Sexual Offences
Act, 1956,with life imprisonment. Section 25 runs:
It
is a felony for a person who is the owner or occupier of any premises, or
who has, or acts or assists in, the management or control of any premises, to
induce or knowingly suffer a girl under the age of 13 to resort to or be on those
premises for the purpose of having unlawful sexual intercourse with men or with
a particular man.
Sections 26
and
27 are worded in exactly the same way except
that
the reference to felony is omitted (those sections create misdemea-
nours)
and
for the
expression"
girl under the age of
13"
there is
substituted"
girl not under the age of 13, but under the age of
16"
and"
woman who is a defective" respectively.
The offences have five elements: (i) the accused must be the owner,
occupier, manager, etc., of the premises; (ii) he must induce or
knowingly suffer; (iii) a girl under 13; (iv) to resort to, or be on the
premises; (v) for the purposes of having unlawful sexual intercourse.
The meanings
of
the terms used in elements (iii) and (v) have been
examined elsewhere in these articles. Element (iv) is self-explanatory.
Owner, occupier, etc.
The phrase is wide enough to embrace almost anyone who is
concerned in the ownership, occupation, management or control of
any premises.
It
follows that if the owner (for example) neither
induces
nor
suffers the girl to resort to the premises this does not
mean that no one can be charged with the offence. On the contrary
if the girl is allowed to resort thereto, the person who suffered it,
provided he occupies, manages or controls, or acts or assists in the
June 1964 278
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