Campaigners oppose "rough sex" defence
Campaigners say men are increasingly using the "rough sex" defence to try to get away with murdering women. They want the law changed to prevent such a defence and have the support of two MPs. But what difference would it make?
The death of British backpacker Grace Millane provoked an outpouring of anger and disgust, not only because of the circumstances in which she lost her life, but because of how her killer tried to explain away her death.
He told police that Ms Millane had asked to be strangled during sex, and her death was an accident. Personal details about the 22-year-old's sex life and apparent interest in BDSM were then discussed in court, and duly reported on by the world's media. Commentators believed she was being "slut-shamed" and blamed for her own death.
Ms Millane, from Wickford in Essex, was murdered in New Zealand, but back home in England former solicitor general Harriet Harman wants the law changed to stop men from being able to use the defence of "rough sex gone wrong" - even if the death is a genuine accident. They should always be prosecuted for murder, the Labour MP believes, and it is "his bad luck" if a man accidentally kills his partner during sex.
"The new version of men being able to blame the woman they killed for her own death is by saying 'she wanted the violence'," Ms Harman told Woman's Hour. "And the difficulty is that there were two people there and only one of them gets to speak because he has killed her, and therefore her version of events is not heard."
This defence offered by Ms Millane's killer was rejected, and he was convicted of her murder. But, still, the case has led to increased concerns about men using the so-called "Fifty Shades of Grey" defence in murder trials.
For full article https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-51151182
