The Labour MP Harriet Harman has introduced a proposed law change that would prevent rape complainants from being quizzed in court about their sexual history, saying the move was needed in the wake of the acquittal of the footballer Ched Evans. A law change in 1999 had barred such court tactics, but permitted defence lawyers to apply to introduce a complainant’s previous sexual history under certain circumstances. The idea of introducing a complainant’s sexual history into a rape trial had “no evidential value” and was deeply outdated, Harman said. She said she had sought to attach the measure to the prisons and courts bill in part because this was adding separate provisions intended to support rape complainants, notably allowing them to undergo cross-examination via video. “The problem is that the ruling in the Ched Evans case left wide open the problem of previous sexual history.

Source: The Guardian March 24, 2017 18:42 UTC