Prisoner at the bar...

I really do regret having to return to the issue of rape,  but I feel the latest incursion by the Director of Public Prosecutions cannot be allowed to pass without comment. It is a basic principle of English law that it is for the prosecution to prove guilt, and not for the accused to have to prove innocence. But the DPP has now laid down guidelines which mean that in rape cases the defendant will effectively have to convince the police - and if the case goes further, the court - that the woman he is accused of raping did consent to having sex with him.  In other words he will in fact have to prove his innocence.  Rape is a very difficult area and I don't think the DPP's latest comments make it any easier.