Bahamas: Man who had sex with teen got a harsh sentence
Minister of National Security Wayne Munroe said today that the four-year prison sentence imposed on a 40-year-old man who impregnated a 14-year-old schoolgirl was too long because the victim willingly had sex with the man.
“If I were advising the accused and someone gets seven years for raping somebody, I wouldn’t be advising my client to agree to four years for unlawful intercourse because I would say that if we go to court, you would say to the judge, ‘He didn’t rape her. She consented,’” he said when asked about the issue.
On Monday, a 40-year-old man was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to five counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with the girl, the result of a plea deal.
Munroe said, “If you were to rape a virgin and if you were to rape a prostitute, both are rape, but you’re likely to be awarded a higher sentence for raping a nun than raping a prostitute.
“That’s just what the case was.”
Munroe argued that having sex with a person under the age of consent “is not rape” and said that he does not understand the controversy over the issue.
“It’s not rape,” he said.
“The issue is that you’re being punished because the person is under consent.”
Munroe added, “The charge was unlawful sexual intercourse, which means that it’s not rape, which means that you are being punished because as a big man, you shouldn’t be having sex with anybody under 16.
“If the person is under 16, if you force them, they would still charge you with sex with somebody under 16.
“But the sentencing court would say that you forced this person; they didn’t initiate it, so you will get a higher sentence than somebody who initiates it with you.”
Section 11 of the Sexual Offences Act states that any person who has unlawful sexual intercourse or attempts to have unlawful sexual intercourse with a person between 14 and 16 is liable to life in prison.
Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Franklyn Williams was accused of victim-blaming after commenting on the matter.
After the backlash, he later said, “In this case, the meeting, if you want to call it that, was initially on Facebook. I was merely making a general observation. I was in no way blaming this young lady. She’s not at fault. This is a person who was responsible. When I say accountable, I’m talking about the man who should have enough discernment and sense at the age of 40 to know he’s not dealing with an equal.
“I’m not blaming her. But I do want to underscore that when these acts occurred, she should have been under the supervision of her mother, her father or her guardian — a responsible adult.”
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