Is this rape?

Lindsay Mitchell blogs about an example of rape used by Rape Crisis. The example is:

Jo is a Year 13 Student at XX High School. She is at a party on a Saturday night. Jared is going to be there and she’s been trying to hook up with him for awhile. She’s wearing a short skirt, boots, and a low cut top –she’s sure to catch his attention –She looks great. Jo and her friends drink a few bottles of wine before
they get to the party and she feels pretty drunk by the time they arrive. At the party she starts talking with Jared, he asks if she wants to go up to one of the bedrooms –they walk up the stairs followed by comments from Jared’s mates as they close the door.

In the room they start kissing, and Jared is putting his hands up her top and down her pants, she likes it and starts touching Jared. Jared then takes off his pants and hers. Jo starts to feel uncomfortable and pulls back a bit, and pulls her underwear back up. She doesn’t want to have sex with Jared but doesn’t know how to stop it. Everyone at the party thinks they’re having sex, and she doesn’t want Jared to think she’s tight. Jared pulls her knickers back down and they have sex.

Jared certainly should have ascertained why Jo put her underwear back on, rather than pull them back down. But to paint this as criminal offending is highly arguable. I imagine the legal test would be whether a “reasonable” person would conclude they had consent in Jared’s place.

What one hopes would happen if for Jo to tell Jared that she likes him but doesn’t want to have sex or go all the way, and then Jared of course to 100% respect that.

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