Article: Midshipman's rape trial opens: Owens' prosecutors face tough standard on 'force' and 'consent'.

Byline: Bradley Olson

Jul. 10--The rape trial this week of Lamar Owens, Navy's star quarterback in 2005, will probably focus on the strict and antiquated definition of rape under military law, several experts said. The statute - which requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt that rape was committed "by force and without consent" - makes it harder for prosecutors to win convictions in rape cases, which prompted Congress to reform the statute in 2005. But the new law, which creates degrees of rape and drastically revises the definition of consent, will not take effect until October 2007, too late for several courts-martial coming up this summer involving ...

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