The Criminal Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 2003

Rape

18.—(1) A man commits rape if—

(a) he has sexual intercourse with a person who at the time of the intercourse does not consent to it; and

(b) at the time he knows that the person does not consent to the intercourse or is reckless as to whether that person consents to it.

(2) Any reference to rape in a statutory provision shall be construed in accordance with paragraph (1).

(3) It is hereby declared that if at a trial for a rape offence the jury has to consider whether a man believed that a person was consenting to sexual intercourse, the presence or absence of reasonable grounds for such a belief is a matter to which the jury is to have regard, in conjunction with any other relevant matters, in considering whether he so believed.

(4) In this Article—

“man” includes a male person of any age;

“rape offence” means rape, attempted rape, aiding, abetting, counselling and procuring rape or attempted rape, incitement to rape, conspiracy to rape, assault with intent to rape and burglary with intent to rape; and

references to sexual intercourse are to sexual intercourse whether vaginal or anal and shall be construed as references to carnal knowledge in accordance with section 63 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (c. 100) (under which such intercourse is deemed complete on proof of penetration only).