Transcript Slide 1

Sexual Assault
In-Service Training
for
Maryland Law Enforcement Officers
2005
Sexual Assault
In-Service Training
for
Maryland Law Enforcement Officers

Course Series
• Overview of Sexual Assault
• Preliminary Sexual Assault
Investigation
• Sexual Assault Victim Interviews:
Challenges and Techniques
• False Allegations and Unfounded
Reports of Sexual Assault
This project is supported by VAWA-2002-1107, awarded by the U. S.
Department of Justice. The assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice
Programs, coordinates the activities of the program offices and bureaus.
Points of view or opinions contained within this document are those of the
author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of
the United States Department of Justice.
Allegations and
Unfounded Reports
of Sexual Assault
Purpose of this Training
• To describe the difference between False
Allegations and Unfounded Reports.
• To summarize the discrepancies in reporting of
false allegations.
• To modify bias that can impact the investigation.
• To explain how and why false allegation statistics
are so high in cases of sexual assault.
• To illustrate the implications of “unfounding” when
other means of clearing a case should be used.
False Reports or Improper
Reporting?
Because of the intimate and invasive nature of
sexual assaults, the investigation of such crimes
can bring an entirely new set of complications and
mistakes than investigations of other crimes.
However, it is widely accepted that the high rate of
false allegations in instances of sexual assault can
largely be attributed to improper classifying or
closing of difficult or dead-end cases.
Defining the Terms
Unfounded Reports.
On occasion, an agency will receive a complaint
which is determined through investigation to be
false or baseless. If the investigation shows that
no offense occurred nor was attempted, the
reported offense can be unfounded for UCR
purposes.” (UCR Handbook, pg. 40).
False Allegations.
False Allegations are those known to be
unequivocally false in their entirety. This term
should not be used interchangeably with
Unfounded Reports.
While the terms “false” and “unfounded” are often used interchangeably,
it must be clear that “unfounded” does not necessarily mean “false” as
“false” is merely a reason for “unfounding” a report.
False vs. Unfounded?
Unfounding a case should not be used as an
alternative to closing or otherwise clearing a case.
Many cases are declared unfounded for a variety of reasons other than
a thorough investigation determining that the allegations are
unequivocally false.
Victim gives inconsistent or untrue facts
Delayed reporting
Lack of visible physical injury
Relationship between victim or suspect
Recall of additional facts
Victim is vague about details of the assault
Victim fails a polygraph
Case is difficult to investigate
“Creating” an Unfounded
Case
Instances of police actually creating
unfounded cases out of legitimate
allegations are not uncommon and can
further inflate the rate of false reports.
The Vicious Cycle of Bias and
Reporting
1. Ages old misconceptions:
• Does rape really occur as
often as they say?
• Most/many rape allegations
are false and motivated by
malice or revenge
5. The improper classification
of the case becomes part of
official crime statistics and
will incorrectly feed the myths
and misconceptions of rape and
the rape victim.
2. Bias on the part of the
investigating officer that
manifests in disbelief or even
hostility during the
interview/investigation.
3. The victim, sensing
negativity or mistrust, may
change, embellish, appear
confused, or recant her story
altogether.
4. The officer, giving in to his
own bias and fueled by
perceived untruths or
evasiveness, may “unfound”
the case.
Consequences of improperly
unfounding cases
• For police agencies, can lead to public
scrutiny and pressure
• For victims, can produce feelings of betrayal
and negative effects on recovery
• For public, creates a false sense of reality
and deters future victims from reporting
• For society, fuels the myth of false
allegations
Frequency of False Reporting
Statistics on false reporting vary so widely
(anywhere from 2-50%) that it is virtually
impossible to make an accurate statement
on how frequently it occurs.
However, since 1991, the FBI has been
saying that the statistic on false reporting
is a standard 8-12% across the country.
The agency defines a report as being
false when a thorough investigation
determines that no actual offense has
occurred.
Why do People Make False
Reports?
As in any crime, there are instances of false allegations.
Generally, people who make false claims of having been
assaulted, do so for the following reasons:
•Psychological or emotional problems
•Attention seeking
•Delusional
•Self protection
•Hiding an affair or explaining a pregnancy
•Alibi
•Parental pressure
•Malice
•Financial reasons
False Allegation Indicators
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The victim-offender relationship
Force and Resistance
Nature of the sexual Acts
Recollection of Details
Physical Injury
Evidence
Personal and Lifestyle considerations
Questions…
• How false does an allegation have to be?
• How do you address inconsistent or untrue
statements? Is the case dead?
Corrective Measures
1. Assume all allegations are true, approaching
each victim with compassion and openness.
2. Stick to the investigation guidelines!
3. Take a teamwork approach,
incorporating medical personnel,
victims’ advocates, prosecutors
into the investigation
4. Take steps to reduce the likelihood
of inconsistent or untrue statements.
A Victim’s Story
17-year-old Cheryl attended a party with some friends
against the wishes of her parents. She was dressed to
kill in a tight strapless dress. At the party, she tried
marijuana for the first time and drank alcohol. When
she was leaving the party, a young man she knew to
be a friend offered to drive her home.
When Cheryl arrived home, she told her
parents that she had been raped. They
immediately took her to the police
station.
A Victim’s Story
At the station, the officers questioned Cheryl in front of
her parents. Because she had gone to the party without
their knowledge and had been using illegal substances,
she lied about the attack. She told the police that she
had been at the movies with friends and did not know
her attacker. She was visibly shaken and showed many
outward signs of having recently been assaulted, the
police took her story at face value.
When the medical exam showed traces of drugs
and alcohol in Cheryl’s system, the police took a
very different view of the story. She admitted
that she had lied about the circumstances but
insisted she was telling the truth about the
attack.
What Will Happen Next?
a) The investigating officer will excuse Cheryl’s
parents and approach Cheryl in a nonjudgmental
way, imploring her to tell the true story.
a) The investigating officer will chastise Cheryl for
lying to them and wasting their time then he will
threaten to charge her with filing a false report.
a) The investigating officer will gather more
information from Cheryl in a half-hearted attempt
to at least clear the case.
True or False
1. Most victims who falsely report sexual assaults do so with malicious
intent.
2. If the victim refuses to help in the investigation or changes her story,
she is most likely lying about the attack.
3. “Real” rape victims have distinctive, predictable reactions to their
assault.
4. Unfounding a case is acceptable when the victim
recants her story or refuses to follow through with
the investigation.
5. The occurrence of false allegations of sexual
assaults is much higher than for other crimes.
Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault
1517 Governor Ritchie Highway, Suite 207
Arnold, Maryland 21012
410-974-4507 (phone)
410-757-4770 (fax)
www.mcasa.org (web)
[email protected] (email)