A Gap Or a Chasm? Attrition in Reported Rape Cases

Home Office figures show an ongoing decline in the conviction rate for reported rape cases, with the conviction rate in 2002 being 5.6 per cent. This report draws on material from two evaluation projects funded by the Home Office Crime Reduction Programme Violence Against Women Initiative in an attempt to explain the high attrition rate in rape cases. It presents findings from the evaluation of two Sexual Assault Referral Centres, one non-centre based support service and three comparison areas where there was no specialist service for victims. Researchers tracked 3,500 rape cases through the courts and interviewed 228 rape victims. The authors identify six points at which attrition is likely to occur, and make recommendations for targeted interventions to reduce the attrition rate in these cases.