In this dissertation, I examined the construction, function, and consequences of causal attributions in all British Columbia sexual assault trial judgements available through Quicklaw from 1986-1994. Most judgements contained causal attributions, that is, the judge discursively constructed an explanation of the assault. These attributions were analyzable as internalizing versus externalizing (i.e., under the individual's control or not); situating or saturating (i.e., situated in a particular time and place versus abstracted and pervasive), and as violent or nonviolent (i.e., caused by a choice or tendency to be violent versus a choice or tendency to use alcohol, to be sexually inappropriate, etc.). The preponderance of attributions for persons guilty of sexual assault cast the cause as something other than violence. This suggests that, despite laws which defined sexual assault as violent per se, judges are not treating these offenses as violent.
These attributions along with two other sets of factors (case parameters identified by Ruby, 1994, and stranger versus nonstranger status) were then tested to determine which factors were related to sentencing. Causal attributions were significantly correlated with sentence. In particular, nonviolent attributions were significantly related to lower sentences. Only the relatively rare violent and internalizing attributions (e.g., "he chose to be violent") were significantly correlated with higher sentences.
Most case parameters were either not associated with sentence or were actually correlated in the opposite direction. For example, breach of trust was negatively associated with sentence: judges gave offenders who assaulted children in their care systematically lower sentences. Stranger status was significantly correlated with the offender receiving a higher sentence, even when the stranger had not physically touched the victim.
Overall, these findings illustrate the usefulness of examining judges' discourse as well as the facts of the case. When judges discursively constructed an assault as nonviolent, the sentence was lower. When they attributed the assault to violent causes and cast the offender as responsible, the sentence was higher. Moreover, the results suggest that the judges are not dealing with sexual assault and other sexualized offenses in the way that is consistent with the relevant legislative laws and sentencing principles. In particular, the legal system fails to protect children from those charged with their care and protection. / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/9697 |
| Date | 13 July 2018 |
| Creators | Coates, Linda Jane |
| Contributors | Bavelas, Janet Beavin |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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