Accused Rapists To Lose Anonymity Under Qld Law Reform

Accused rapists are set to lose their anonymity under new changes to Queensland laws.

The laws which protect the identity of accused rapists up to several years as their cases are trialled in court will soon be scrapped.

Queensland and the Northern Territory are currently the only two jurisdictions which uphold the law, protecting accused rapists from being publicly named. 

Currently law only prohibits a sexual offender from being publicly identified while other offences including murder are not offered the same protection.

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Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman said that the new changes are expected to happen “soon”.

“We know that these laws are based on outdated rape myths which are not appropriate in our modern criminal justice system,” a spokesperson for Ms Fentiman said.

The changes come following almost 200 recommendations from the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce.

The taskforce are believed to have produced the recommendations following several consultation with victim-survivors and law enforcement.

Under current law, anyone charged with attempted rape, rape, assault with intent to commit rape and sexual assault are entitled to anonymity which could cause “reputational damage” in the lead up to their verdict.

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