A BAD DECISION ON A DIVORCE BY JUDGE DENISE LEWIS

For some reason, the press decided to blow up a decision made in writing on a point of law raised in a divorce and matrimonial matter.  It was a simple case.  The law of The Bahamas unfortunately requires a reason for divorce.  One reason is cruelty toward the partner.  The wife in the petition in the instant case petitioned the courts on the ground of cruelty.  Her claim was that her husband used to jump on her, penetrate her, and then whether she wanted sex or not, he would have sex, satisfy himself then roll over and go to sleep.  This she described as rape.  Judge Denise Lewis in the case took the opportunity, the appointment of Hubert Minnis so you’re not surprised that it would be thin on the ground in logic,  decided to go full throttle into the matter and said in her judgment that it is not possible in Bahamian law to rape a wife.  That is not true. The fact is if you are married but are judicially separated in Bahamian law, you can be raped by your husband.  But the point for us is that the matter of whether rape was possible in marriage was not necessary to the decision. The only question was whether the respondent, the husband was cruel to the wife in the way he treated her sexually.  The judge answered yes.  But on the way ventured into the titillating and inflammatory language about rape, because of the campaign by women to criminalize marital rape.  We support criminalizing marital rape but this decision doesn’t help that issue.  When you see these things being blown up across the press, you know someone is trying to get publicity.  But for friends of the Judge, this won’t help if the idea is to get the impression that we are dealing with a potential Lord Denning here.