ABSTRACT

The chapter epigraphs will, I hope, give some inkling of the conflict and ambivalence that pervade attitudes towards sexuality and, in particular, socalled deviant sexuality. These attitudes have lengthy historical roots and fierce injunctions against the practice of deviant sex can be found in religious works such as the English Bible. For example, homosexuality is described in the Book of Leviticus as an "abomination" and intercourse with animals as "a violation of nature" (Chapter 18, v. 23 and 24). These ancient and pervasive attitudes have found recent vehement expression in the opposition demonstrated against the appointment of the openly gay American clergyman, Gene Robinson, to the office of Bishop, and the withdrawal from appointment to a bishopric by Canon Jeffrey John in the UK. A little thought concerning the numbers of homosexuals in the community and, by implication, within the church would tend to support the view that being "gay" is OK as long as you don't go "public" about it if you are a clergyman. This chapter is being drafted at a time when many of

the laws pertaining to unlawful sex have been brought up to date (Sex Offences Act 2003) and the relevance of these important changes will be referred to in relation to the offences I discuss in the following pages. The chapter is divided into four sections. First, a brief context-setting background, second, a classification of sexual offences (clinical and legal), third, brief comment on the size of the problem and fourth, the major section, a discussion of some of the more common sexual offences and some briefer references to a selection of rarer sexual misbehaviours that come within the purview of the criminal law.