Ring, Sinead
(2016)
Trauma and the Construction of Suffering in Irish
Historical Child Sexual Abuse Prosecutions.
International Journal For Crime, Justice And Social Democracy, 6 (3).
pp. 88-103.
ISSN 2202-7998
Abstract
Adopting the special issue’s broad definition of criminal law reform, this article explores
some of the ways the Irish criminal process is grappling with the demands for justice of
adults who report childhood sexual abuse. In particular, it shows how the cultural notion of
trauma is bound up with the construction of victims’ suffering. In historical child sexual
abuse prosecutions, trauma is shown to be an effect of the abuse on the victim/survivor; a
site of mediation of the relationship between the state and victims; and a site of mediation
of the relationship between the state and its past. The article first explores these insights in
relation to the law’s approach to questions of alleged procedural unfairness to defendants
flowing from the passage of time. Trauma is exposed as both legitimating some forms of
suffering, and disqualifying others. The article then employs the trope of trauma to expose
the problems with current approaches to cross‐examination of vulnerable victims and
recent reforms of the rules on disclosure of victims’ counselling records. Finally, the article
explores the possibilities of trauma discourse in thinking anew about how to address the
suffering of victims of historical child sexual abuse.
| Item Type: |
Article
|
| Keywords: |
Victims; historical child sexual abuse; Ireland; trauma; disclosure; trial process; |
| Academic Unit: |
Faculty of Social Sciences > Law |
| Item ID: |
12307 |
| Identification Number: |
https://doi.org/10.5204/ijcjsd.v6i3.417 |
| Depositing User: |
Sinead Ring
|
| Date Deposited: |
30 Jan 2020 15:03 |
| Journal or Publication Title: |
International Journal For Crime, Justice And Social Democracy |
| Publisher: |
Queensland Uuniversity of Technology |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| URI: |
|
| Use Licence: |
This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available
here |
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