Many victims who have reported sexual assault say their experience of the justice system is that they are the ones put on trial. Some of the experts we spoke to believe that one way of giving survivors more of a voice and agency in proceedings, as well as engaging offenders and tackling the problem of recidivism, is.
"Our system is a good system ... I think there is room to have a better system," Michele Williams told us. Just as the aim of each case tried is to establish a sound precedent for future practice, we should examine the experience of each sexual assault victim to see how we can do better as a society. As County Court judge Paul Higham put it: "The law that we administer ... [is] not the property of this court, it's not mine. It's yours.
The Justice system is a joke. All these light sentences, no wonder victims are afraid to report to police. Brief time in jail or a community service order and they are free to get revenge
Why do you think so many victims of sexual violence are reluctant to report to police? What can be done to improve our justice system? Join the conversation with the journalists behind Invisible Crime in What's got Melbourne talking: