2 days ago
Man who avoided court for rape as teen faces fresh charges for attacking woman
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was previously accused of serious sexual assault when he was 15-year-old.
A man who was allowed to avoid prosecution for rape as a teenager due to his age has appeared in court charged with attacking another woman.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was previously accused of serious sexual assault when he was 15-year-old.
However at the time his case was dealt with by the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration (SCRA) in agreement with the Crown Office under controversial prosecution guidelines.
It meant he did not have to appear in court to face any charges and instead was told to attend an educational course to change his behaviour.
But the Sunday Mail can reveal the same individual appeared on petition in court in April accused of rape.
It is understood that because of the way his case was handled previously, he does not have a criminal record and will now be treated as a first offender.
Scottish Conservative shadow minister for victims and community safety Sharon Dowey MSP said: 'The double whammy of the SNP's reckless under-25s sentencing guidelines coupled with their diversion from prosecution orders have enabled predatory offenders to evade justice.
'Diversion from prosecution orders should never be used to deal with dangerous sexual criminals, like they have been on the SNP's watch.
'Rape victims are being betrayed by the SNP's pitifully weak justice system which takes the side of criminals and is completely out of touch with ordinary Scots.
'No alleged rapist should be allowed to walk away with a slap on the wrist, regardless of their age. It's time SNP ministers started prioritising the needs of victims rather than pushing their weakened justice agenda that panders to criminals.'
We have repeatedly highlighted teens accused of rape being spared criminal trial under diversion from prosecution rules.
In June 2023 we revealed how two women who had reported attacks and were prepared to go to court were told the cases would not go ahead due to the guidelines.
Amid public and political outcry Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain ordered a review of how the controversial policy was being applied.
The probe was extended in November 2023 to examine the way offenders aged 12 to 15 accused of rape were dealt with by the Children's Reporter system.
Following our campaign, in April Bain KC announced changes to diversion from prosecution rules.
Additional safeguards were put in place meaning all future decisions on diversion from prosecution will only be taken by senior Crown counsel appointed by the Lord Advocate.
Communication with victims around decisions on cases involving children and sexual offending has also been prioritised.
Diversion from prosecution rules were designed for those committing low-level crimes like vandalism to be dealt with by social work intervention or rehabilitation.
But they began to be applied to young men accused of rape.
Since we highlighted the controversial practice the number of diverted cases has halved.
Referrals to the Scottish Children's Reporter Administration also fell but diversion has continued in some instances.
During 2022-23 a total of 16 cases involving allegations of rape or attempted rape were diverted and 39 referred to the Children's Reporter.
During 2023-24, eight such cases were diverted and 23 referred to the Children's Reporter .
Appearing on petition, the man made no plea and was granted bail. He will return to court at a later date.
A spokesperson for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service said:'We cannot comment on specific details of ongoing cases.
'Sexual offences are among the most complex cases prosecutors handle, and we continuously review our approach.
'We recognise the serious impact of sexual offending and have published a revised framework for the use of diversion and referrals to the Reporter.
'We encourage anyone affected by sexual offending to report it to the police.'
