Elkington, A. (2022) Allowing a Defence to Those Who Commit Crime Under Coercive Control. The Journal of Criminal Law, 86 (5). pp. 295-307. ISSN 0022-0183
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Abstract
Abused women who are coerced to commit crime have no adequate legal defence. Historically, martial coercion may have been pled, but since its repeal and lack of replacement, abused women have been left without adequate protection in the criminal justice system. Duress would seem to be the logical defence in such a situation, but its construction by the courts means that women are still left with no defence. If a woman resists the coercion to commit crime, and instead protects herself against the abuse, she will equally have no suitable defence. Parliament were presented with the opportunity to rectify this problem when passing the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, but despite the Lords’ support, proposals were rejected by the Commons. Whilst research shows that crime committed under coercive control is not an insignificant problem, the current law does not protect some of the most vulnerable from prosecution.
Item Type: | Articles |
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Additional Information: | Elkington, A. (2021) ‘Allowing a Defence to Those Who Commit Crime Under Coercive Control’, The Journal of Criminal Law. doi: 10.1177/00220183211050570 © The Author(s) 2021 |
Uncontrolled Keywords: | Coercive control, defences, Domestic Abuse Act 2021, duress, marital coercion |
Subjects: | K Law > K Law (General) K Law > K5000 Criminal law and procedure |
Divisions: | Academic Areas > Institute of Arts and Humanities > Law |
Depositing User: | Angela Roberts |
Date Deposited: | 13 May 2022 11:59 |
Last Modified: | 14 Oct 2022 08:44 |
URI: | https://eprints.chi.ac.uk/id/eprint/6254 |