Anonymity for persons accused of sexual offences in Northern Ireland: addressing post-acquittal stigma, shame, and vulnerability

This paper draws on the author’s ongoing PhD study and focuses on the issue of anonymity for persons accused of serious sexual offences in Northern Ireland through a theoretical framework of stigma and shame. Under the Justice (Sexual Offences and Trafficking Victims) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 section 12, individuals accused of sexual offences are anonymised until charge in Northern Ireland. This recent amendment gave effect to the earlier recommendations made in the Gillen Report into the Law and Procedures in Serious Sexual Offences in Northern Ireland (2019). The paper argues that further reform should be considered to extend the anonymity provision until the point of conviction, given that there are a number of core contextual factors unique to Northern Ireland which impact cultural attitudes toward those accused of sexual offending. These factors include the tight-knit nature of Northern Irish communities, the significance of religion and resulting moral conservatism of the state, and the presence of paramilitary organisations. Whilst there are many arguments in favour of and against anonymising those accused of sexual offences, this paper focuses on the argument that an allegation of sexual offending is uniquely stigmatising, leaving those accused in a vulnerable position when they return to society post-acquittal. Drawing on qualitative interviews, it discusses how these contextual factors interact with one another to influence the experiences of accused persons within Northern Irish society, even after acquittal.