A community review of Hamilton sexual assault cases has found that 70 per cent of those cleared as “unfounded” between 2010 and 2016 were not handled properly.
A report to be presented to Hamilton’s Police Services Board on Thursday says some cases were dismissed without all witnesses being interviewed because too much weight was given to an accused’s version of events, or because of biases about how a victim should behave and other “rape myths.”
Lenore Lukasik-Foss, director of the Sexual Assault Centre of Hamilton (SACHA), was part of the team that carried out the review involving a random sample of 63 sexual assault investigations.
She says they also found, in “way too many cases,” detectives were “using interrogation techniques that were more appropriate for an accused than for a victim.”
Lukasik says better training of officers is one of their recommendations, but she adds that it must be part of a “culture” shift that says “this is what we value, and we put our money where our mouth is with resources, and we hire and promote people with these values.”
Another of the report’s findings is that the sexual assault unit is comprised of seven overworked officers handling an average of 90 cases each per year.
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In regards to training, the review recommends helping officers to better understand victim responses and the neurobiology of trauma.
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It also says the investigative model must take vulnerable populations into consideration, including people with mental health challenges, people who are street-involved and the Indigenous community.
The report recommends hiring two more officers for the sexual assault unit, which would bring the total to nine, and having victim services workers meet with victims before they’re interviewed by police.
Hamilton Police Chief Eric Girt says some of those changes are already in place.
Girt adds that “our fundamental premise in doing this review, is how do we make services better for the victims of sexual assault?” He says that remains the focus.
Lukasik-Foss applauds the police service for conducting the external review, noting that “when you bring in the community, we have a different set of eyes and a different lens through which we’re looking at these things, and a greater awareness of dealing with victims of sexual assault.”
https://omny.fm/shows/bill-kelly-show/bonus-interview-unfounded-sexual-assault-cases-are
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