In 2018, the Association of Accredited Clinics for the Termination of Pregnancy (ACAI, for its initials in Spanish) produced a report concluding that 89% of women who had an abortion felt harassed, and 66% felt threatened.
Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution v Jan, Victorian County Court (2024) is significant as it marks Australia’s first conviction for the offence of forced marriage. The defendant, a member of the Hazara Islamic community residing in Shepparton, Victoria, was convicted and sentenced for causing her 20-year-old daughter to enter into a forced marriage.
Connecticut General Statutes Section 53a-192a defines the crime of trafficking in persons and prohibits the use of force, fraud, or coercion to compel another person to engage in sexual conduct, labor, or services in the state of Connecticut. The statute criminalizes recruiting, enticing, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining another person for the purpose of exploitation.
The Counter-Trafficking Act of Saint Lucia is designed to prevent and combat the trafficking of women and children. The Act criminalizes trafficking and related acts such as assisting, conspiring, or directing others, with penalties of up to EC$100,000, five years’ imprisonment, or both upon summary conviction.
The Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act (DVJSA) allows New York courts to impose reduced or alternative sentences and to resentence incarcerated individuals, when documented domestic abuse significantly contributed to the offense and a standard sentence would be unduly harsh. Penal Law § 70.45 provides the determinate-sentencing framework that courts may depart from under the Act. Penal Law § 60.1
A high school teenage girl from an impoverished neighborhood consented to undergo job training as a receptionist at the appellant's escort agency. She alleged that during her training, the appellant held her against her will, and raped and sexually assaulted her. The appellant argued that his conviction should be overturned because the victim had consented. The court dismissed the kidnapping charges, but upheld the rape and sexual assault charges. The court acknowledged that although the victim consented to parts of the training (i.e.
The Family Violence Act 2024 (“FVA”) was ratified in 2024, replacing the Domestic Violence Act 1996. The FVA adopts a broad definition of “family member” including spouses, cohabitants and children, and expands the concept of domestic violence to include family violence. Family violence is defined as any physical, sexual, emotional, or economic abuse that is threatening, controlling, or coercive and causes a family member to fear for their safety. Additionally, causing a child to be exposed to such behavior is also considered family violence.
Section 14 of Chapter 2 of the Ghanaian Criminal Code provides the definition of consent. It states that consent is void if the person giving it is under years.12 of age, or in sexual offences under 16 years of age Consent is void if the person is insane, immature, intoxicated, or is as a result of any other cause unable to understand the nature or consequences of the act to which he consents.
The issue here was related to the evaluation of evidence and the question whether the sexual intercourse in question was coerced. In this case, A and X had engaged in sexual intercourse which, according to A’s testimony, she was coerced into following physical approaches and violence by X, the male defendant. A had asked X to stop the approaches and attempted to resist him both physically and verbally. X had not complied but instead continued to engage in sexual conduct.
The appellant arrived at the respondent’s home armed with a pistol and raped her. The respondent, 16 years old at the time, was already 32 weeks pregnant with the appellant’s child due to multiple previous rapes. The respondent filed a suit against the appellant and gave birth to a daughter during the trial. The Trial Court found the appellant guilty and sentenced him to 20 years of imprisonment, to which he appealed to the Lahore High Court.
