Germany plans to treat the use of date rape drugs like the use of weapons in prosecutions as part of measures to ensure justice for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.
“We classify date rape drugs, which are increasingly used as a widespread tool in crimes, as weapons. This creates the basis for significantly stricter prosecutions,” Alexander Dobrindt, the interior minister, said on Friday. “We are committed to clear consequences and consistent enforcement. Women should feel safe and be able to move freely everywhere.”
Nearly 54,000 women and girls were the victims of sexual offences in Germany in 2024 – an increase of 2.1% on the previous year – of which nearly 36% were victims of rape and sexual assault.
I mean, they literally are weapons…
Potentially deadly
Poison has been a weapon for ages, so I fully agree.
Maybe someone more educated than me on the topic can be more descriptive of how it would be classified. Would it not be a chemical weapon by definition?
In a logical world it would be. But criminally I don’t think anywhere differentiates type of weapon other than “firearm” and “deadly”.
They need to fully separate it from date rape too. Back in my younger days I knew 3 different dudes who got dosed out at bars. I highly doubt they were intended rape victims, but a lot of robberies start out with someone slipping something into your drink, then getting you in the parking lot.
Drugging anyone for anyone reason should qualify as attempted manslaughter. Which, counter intuitively is a real charge.
It makes it easier to charge rapists too because you don’t have to prove rape, and can even charge them before a rape happens. If you can prove rape, throw it on top as additional charges.
I think the primary distinction is that a weapon in a criminal context is typically something that is used to threaten/coerce someone, or to enable you to cause (more/more severe) physical harm/incapacitation in a physical altercation.
Date rape drugs aren’t used to threaten/coerce people, and whilst they can cause harm, it is generally not the intended goal when someone uses them.
So whilst I agree that classifying date rape drugs as weapons is a good move, there definitely are relevant distinctions as to why drugs are typically not considered weapons.
You make a good point that there aren’t more classifications, the only other one I can think of is state dependent, and that’s vehicular manslaughter.
The thing about “date rape drugs” is that plenty, I would say most of, their users are not using them for SA. GHB for example, is/was a pretty common party drug, especially in the gay scene. “Roofies” or Flunitrazepam, are one of the rarest drugs going these days, prescription or illicit. Xannax fits that bill these days. So depending on how the legislation is written, if these drugs are only classified as weapons in assault cases, I suppose that’s good. But I don’t agree with the further criminalization of drugs in general.
Also the most common date rape drug bar none is Alcohol
While date rap and sexual violence is horrible… Do these drugs have any real value?
Like yes they can be used for date rape but are also given anti-anxiety or ant-nausea or anything like that?
scopalamine is one that used for date raped, although not common, it appears to make you unconscious for a day if high enough. the show Criminal minds had an episode where the perpatrator used to rape/ or rob people.
Yeah but why is it allowed at all if that’s the case?
One of my fiancés is narcoleptic and needs meds like GHB to sleep 'cuz the anti-narcoleptics she needs to stay awake during the day won’t let her sleep otherwise.
Hmm interesting and makes sense.
Wait one of your fiancé? How many women are you planning to marry?
Is the stimulant desoxyn by chance?
They’re only being classified as weapons in prosecution, not being banned.
Makes sense
Most are used as either anaesthetics or prescribed for insomnia.
I’m not an expert on this, but I know it’s common to use things like tranquilizers intended for farm animals.
Ah, KO-Tropfen?
Ridiculous overreach of justice yet again. Psychotropic substances usually associated with date rape like GHB/Liquid Ecstasy are used recreationally by the overwhelming majority of people. The fact that they can be used to for sexual assault is tragic, but nobody should be charged with a crime they did not commit.
Slippery slope, but what else can you expect from these clowns.If I punched you, that would be assault.
If I hit you with a hammer, that would be assault with a weapon.
If I stood beside you with a hammer and did not harm you at all, then I have not committed any crime.
No-one is going to be charged with crimes they didn’t commit because of this. Classifying them as a weapon is only relevant for cases in which they were actively used to commit sexual assault, much the same way that a hammer only counts as a weapon if I assault you with it.
Though I understand why you came away with the impression you did — I am often exasperated at weird drug laws that are overly prohibitive and often unscientific in how they criminalise relatively low risk drugs, which meant that I also initially had the same reading of this news as you did. Fortunately, it seems that this is not an example of one of those silly drug laws, but an actually sensible measure.
That seems more sensible than how I initially understood it. Thanks for taking the time to elaborate.
I feel ya. Didn’t pass a quick smell test for me either.
In the way that sometimes a hammer can be a tool and sometimes a hammer can be a weapon, so can drugs. Two things can be true.
By an overwhelming majority? Really? Seems just a tad exaggerated…
