Being the victim of a sexual assault can be difficult enough, but imagine reliving the experience during a police interrogation.
For a survivor, making a police report can be a difficult first step. Many police officials are aware of this, and say they are working to be more sensitive to victim’s needs.
Lt. Ray Hall of the Lansing Police Department said there have been significant changes in the way police agencies deal with sexual assault survivors.
“Twenty years ago, victim blaming was common place,” Hall said. “Officers today are more aware of the life crisis situation and the different stages survivors go through.”
Lansing resident Nicole, a sexual assault survivor, said her experience with East Lansing police was positive. The agency helped her regain strength by encouraging her to prosecute.
“I’d call every other day and say I wanted to give up and they would tell me not to,” she said.
Lt. Kelly Beck of the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety said the MSU Police Sexual Assault Guarantee aims to improve police relations with survivors and increase prosecution.
Victims can request a male or female officer who will meet with them privately in a place of choice and their names are not released. Officers will also assist survivors with information about the court system and referrals for counseling services and medical needs.
“We were one of the first in the nation to come up with a guarantee that spells out how we handle sexual assault,” Beck said.
Beck said officers need to be less task-oriented and more sensitive to the survivor’s needs. Victims should be assured they won’t be judged for what occurred, she said.
“Our department realizes crimes of this nature are devastating and we need to serve the community with empathy,” she said.
Karyn Price, the sexual assault counseling coordinator at the Listening Ear, 1017 E. Grand River Ave., said advocates can be very helpful in assisting survivors who are dealing with police, hospital personnel and the legal system.
Steve Thompson, sexual assault services coordinator at Central Michigan University, said advocacy programs are necessary to support the survivor.
“You need police, prosecutors and hospitals to be on the same wavelength,” he said.
But even with supportive police policies and advocacy programs in place, the investigative process can still be difficult.
Detective Sgt. Carrie Costello of the Purdue University Police Department said a police officer may unintentionally make a survivor feel powerless during the police report.
“The most important thing is to not be judgmental,” she said. “It can be difficult when collecting information and evidence because the questions can seem blaming.”
Costello said the officers attend sensitivity training to help avoid these situations.
Bonnie Bucqueroux, coordinator of MSU’s Victims in the Media Program, said sensitivity training helps relieve officers’ anxieties.
“Rape is the most difficult crime to work with,” Bucqueroux said. “Sexual assault is an intimate crime.”
