New Zealand Man Convicted Of Rape After Stealthing Woman During Sex

A man in New Zealand has been convicted of rape after stealthing a woman during sex.

Stealthing is the act of secretly removing a condom during intercourse without the other person's knowledge or consent.

Laws have recently been updated in places around the world to equate the act with rape because of how it can impact the victim.

The man, whose identity is unknown, will appear in court later this month to discover the sentence for his crime.

According to the New Zealand Herald, this is the first time the act of stealthing has been convicted in Kiwi court.

Victoria University of Wellington's Dr Samantha Keene told the newspaper it's a landmark result for people who are victims of the crime.

"Removing a condom during sex exposes the people involved in that activity to health risks, so sexually transmitted infections, HIV and in heterosexual encounters, unintentional pregnancies," she said.

"A conviction for stealthing recognises the seriousness of this conduct for survivors, so it may encourage others to come forward and report their experiences."

Across the Tasman, it appears stealing is on the rise.

A 2018 study by researchers at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre found one in three women and one in five men who have sex with men report being stealthed during sex.

"Survivors [of stealthing] describe nonconsensual condom removal as a threat to their bodily agency and as a dignitary harm," study author Alexandra Brodsky told the Independent in 2017.

"'You have no right to make your own sexual decisions,' they are told. 'You are not worthy of my consideration.'"

Stealthing has been thrust into public discussion thanks, in part, to shows like HBO's I May Destroy You, which have showcased what it can do to a person.

The main character in that critically acclaimed show becomes stealthed and the audience gets taken on the physical and emotional rollercoaster that results from it.

Ms Brodsky praised programmes like this for making stealthing more well known.

"Not just pop culture depictions of nonconsensual condom removal but discussion of its impact can really be powerful, both broadly in raising awareness and in giving survivors a vocabulary to express what happened to them," Brodsky said.

"Without language, without media, without depictions, I think it's easy for survivors to feel like they're the first person this has ever happened to, or that this is just part of sex.

"Not that this is a violation, that they have the right to decide to have sex with a condom and that agreement was broken."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: News

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

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