The law should take into consideration neuroscientific evidence that suggests fear can cause victims to become “frozen” in cases of rape or sexual assault, experts have argued.
Patrick Haggard, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London (UCL), and former UCL undergraduate Ebani Dhawan say that victims are often blamed for not fighting or fleeing their attackers despite clear scientific evidence that sexual assault and rape affects control over a victim’s body movement.
