Rape conviction rate remains lowest of all offences

The latest annual statistics on criminal proceedings concluded in the Scottish courts show a 48 per cent conviction rate in rape and attempted rape cases. This has been the lowest of all offences in each of the past 10 years.

Reflecting the recovery from the pandemic, the total number of people proceeded against rose by 45 per cent to 67,643 in the year to 2021/22, with the number of people convicted rising at a similar rate by 39 per cent to 59,295.

There were increases across all crime and offence groups, with convictions for non-sexual crimes of violence up 37 per cent and sexual crimes up 52 per cent.

The number of convictions for rape and attempted rape increased by 105 per cent from 78 to 160.

Convictions under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 rose by 81 per cent, from 381 to 689. The number of people convicted of a crime with a statutory domestic abuse aggravation increased by 20 per cent, up to 7,803 convictions from 6,529.

The total number of convictions rose by 39 per cent, however those resulting in a custodial sentence increased by 13 per cent. Custodial sentences represented 14 per cent of sentences imposed for all convictions in 2021-22.

The average length of custodial sentence for all crimes, excluding life sentences, in 2021-22 was 376 days, 14 per cent longer than in 2020/21. Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of people convicted were given a community sentence, a 45 per cent increase on the previous year.

The number of bail orders remained relatively static. There were 24,615 undertakings to appear in court, a fall of two per cent.

Police disposals rose by two per cent over the year to 31,247. Recorded police warnings made up 65 per cent of all police disposals this year and most were issued for drugs offences, breach of the peace, and common assault.

The number of COPFS disposals decreased by five per cent, driven by a 28 per cent decrease in the number of fiscal warnings, although the same span saw increases in fiscal fixed penalties (up 12 per cent) and fiscal combined fines and compensation (up 35 per cent).