Actus Reus Of Rape Essay

The actus reus of rape involves the non consensual penetration of the mouth, anus or vagina of a man or woman by a man’s penis. Penetration by the penis is the key to the actus reus of rape. “Penetration is a continuing act from entry to withdrawal.” This enshrines the pre-Sexual Offences Act decision in the case of Kaitmaki that a man who continues to have intercourse after consent is withdrawn commits the actus reus of rape. This essay focuses on the law that protects a female from rape in the UK and US. The definition of rape, that is, the intentional penetration of the vagina, the mouth or the anus with a penis without the consent of the partner arises from the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

The struggle of woman against rape is an increasingly worrying issue in recent years. Rape has been severely under reported in many parts of the world due to the extreme social stigma cast on those who have been raped as well as many other factors. Examples include honor killings, being disowned by families, etc. A United Nations

In case of R V EB, EB had sexual intercourse with the claimant. EB was HIV positive and failed to disclose this to the complainant. The question for the Court of Appeal was whether the apparent consent given by the complainant was ineffective as a result of EB's failure to disclose his status.The Court of Appeal held that a charge of rape could not lie in these circumstances. It was held that:“Where one party to sexual activity has a sexually transmissible disease which is not disclosed to the other party any consent that may have been given to that activity by the other party is not thereby vitiated. The act remains a consensual act.” However, this ruling does not mean that there is a defense to a charge resulting from harm created by the sexual activity (i.e. passing on HIV), but only relates to consent in sexual