Victim of rapist is 'prisoner in her own home' after he avoided jail for attack
The teenage victim of a rapist who avoided jail has received an apology from Scotland's top law officer but still feels like a 'prisoner in her own home'.
Sean Hogg, 21, pounced on the girl at Dalkeith Country Park in Midlothian on a number of occasions between March and June 2018, when she was just 13.
As previously reported in the Mirror, a court heard how the then 17-year-old threatened her and pulled down her clothing, seized her by the wrists and forced her to carry out a sex act on him. Hogg went on to push his victim’s head down and raped her.
Earlier this month he was found guilty of her rape at Glasgow Crown Court but avoided jail. Instead he was sentenced to 270 hours of unpaid work.
According to her lawyer and family, the victim - who is now 18 - had not been made aware that Hogg is no longer banned from making contact with her.
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She has now received a letter apologising for Crown Office failures to keep her informed and confirmed that bail conditions preventing Hogg approaching her in the run-up to his trial no longer apply.
The victim pictured in Dalkeith Country Park where Hogg raped her (DAILY RECORD)This comes despite her lawyer Aamer Anwar, seeking reassurance from Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC that Hogg cannot approach her, the Daily Record reports.
The victim's grandmother says the teenager has once again "been made to feel like a prisoner of her own home".
Judge Lord Lake spared Hogg jail as a result of guidelines for sentencing under-25s that were introduced in Scotland last year.
Justice campaigners attacked the sentence, including author JK Rowling, who said young men were effectively being told the first attack was free in Scotland.
Hogg’s lawyers have lodged papers to appeal his conviction and the Crown Office has still not committed to appealing against the sentence’s leniency.
Hogg, pictured outside court, is now 21 (Vic Rodrick)
He is no longer banned from approaching the victim (Vic Rodrick)The young woman is bewildered by the way she has been treated by the justice system and questioned whether it was worth reporting the rape.
Following the apology, Mr Anwar has asked the Lord Advocate if protection for the victim is built into the sentence.
He says: “Can you advise whether any consideration was given to ensure contact should be avoided with our client in the community that she lives?
“If it was not done, can you confirm that steps will be taken to ensure that this happens for rape victims in the future?
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“The Crown owes a moral duty of care to victims of sex crimes to ensure that they remain protected once they have given evidence and the accused is successfully convicted.”
Anwar’s letter to the Crown Office includes a response from the victim’s grandmother.
She says: “The last two weeks have been a shameful and a cruel way to treat a survivor of rape, my granddaughter. As a family we have been left scrabbling about for information in the press. Whilst we appreciate the Lord Advocate’s apology, it is too little and too late.
She has now received a letter apologising for Crown Office failures (DAILY RECORD)“My granddaughter feels betrayed … as a victim she has been left out of the process.”
She adds: “It is shocking that no one thought my granddaughter important enough to tell that she no longer had the protection of the bail conditions. Once again she was made to feel like a prisoner in her own home.”
Mr Anwar criticises the Crown’s Victim Information and Advice service, saying it had failed to obtain answers to questions raised by the victim.
A Crown Office spokesperson said: “We have been in contact over this case and will continue to provide information.
“The Crown is giving careful consideration to an appeal against sentence. The court has … said they expect a high standard of care in such appeals.”
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