Man sentenced after ‘hiding’ his partner during sex
A Dutch court has convicted a man of removing his condom during sex without his partner’s consent, marking a historic change in the way the act of “stealth” is handled.
“By his actions, the suspect forced the victim to tolerate having unprotected sex with him,” the court said. “In doing so, he restricted her personal freedom and abused the trust she had placed in him.”
The unnamed 28-year-old sent the victim text messages after they had sex, including one that insisted she would “be fine” after learning of the act, AFP reported .
“Concealment” has become a bigger issue for the courts as they grapple with how best to handle cases that can expose a sexual partner to sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancy.
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The Rotterdam District Court located in the district of Dordrecht, where a 28-year-old man was found guilty of having ‘stealth’ his partner during sex. (Google Maps)
The Dutch District Court of Dordrecht, however, acquitted the man of a rape charge, as the court ruled that the sex was consensual.
The judge found an “agreement between the suspect and the complainant about the sexual penetration”.
The court sentenced the suspect, who is an ethnic Syrian resident of Rotterdam, to a three-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of 1,000 euros ($1,073) in damages.
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Collection of colorful condoms (Stock)
The case marks the first conviction in the Netherlands for such an offence. Another case involving a 26-year-old suspect saw the defendant acquitted after the court decided it could not determine whether the man intended to force his partner to have unprotected sex.
“As soon as sex takes place, and it’s not against someone else’s will, then there’s no coercion,” said lawyer Mirjam Levy, who represents the one of the suspects. “If someone finds out afterwards that the conditions are not met, that does not mean that there is coercion.”
Cases of “stealth” have increased in recent years, leading to the creation of a Dutch website, Stealthing.nl, which is run by a “stealth” victim in 2017, according to NL Times.
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State Senator Diana DiZoglio poses for a portrait in Newburyport, Mass., Dec. 30, 2021. DiZoglio is sponsoring a bill to ban “stealth.” The practice of non-consensual condom removal is common, but most state laws are silent on the subject. (Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
The website operator told The Times that “people have already been convicted of stealth rape”, but the Netherlands remains less familiar with the act.
Tracking these cases can be difficult as authorities usually file them under rape charges.
In the United States, California has banned “stealth”, requiring verbal consent before removing a condom. But the state has yet to update its penal code, relying instead on an amendment to the civil code so that victims can sue the perpetrator for damages.
Massachusetts State Senator Diana DiZoglio backed a bill in 2021 to ban the act in her state, telling the Boston Globe that it’s “an important issue that requires the attention of our legislators in order to that we can take a stand with the survivors”.
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A police officer was convicted of sexual assault in a 2018 case in Germany and given an eight-month suspended prison sentence for “infiltration” and ordered to pay 3,100 euros ($3,329) in damages and interests.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Man sentenced after ‘hiding’ his partner during sex
