Improving the criminal justice response to rape and sexual violence in a human way | Tackling VAWG and RASSO Impact Days

Accenture conducted research that reveals what people expect of interactions with public service organisations. Above all else, they want simplicity, humanity and security. If there’s any public service experience that must be simple, human and secure, it’s the experience of reporting sexual violence to police.

If we’re going to improve the response to rape and sexual violence it requires a holistic whole-system response from across policing, health, criminal justice, and the women’s sector, incorporating process, technological and legislative change.Whilst it is a topic that can be uncomfortable to discuss, we are passionate about being part of the conversation.

Trauma followed by more trauma

Over the years, we’ve seen the policing community challenge their practices to help survivors of sexual crimes access justice. And whilst good progress has been made, there is always more that can be done. The reality is that the process of reporting a sexual crime is often a challenging, intrusive and difficult experience. Some survivors may decide not to report the crime because they don’t want to interact with the police and the wider criminal justice system. For example, in the United Kingdom today, only 16% of survivors report rape and serious sexual offenses to the police, and just 1.6% of those reported result in a charge. For the minority that do report, the nature of police interviews can make survivors feel as if they are the ones under investigation. This dynamic can create additional trauma and amplify any existing mistrust of the criminal justice system.

In our increasingly digital world, where we all live our lives through our smartphones, it’s become standard practice for police to download large volumes of information from survivors’ smartphones to investigate and preserve digital forensic evidence.

When survivors’ phones are taken for evidence collection during the investigative process, it can feel like they are the ones being investigated, and it takes away an important lifeline to family and friends. Once their data is downloaded by the police, it can feel like they have lost control of it. Further, the option to have their digital material preserved is only afforded to those survivors that come forwards and report to the police. In the end, many survivors - 43% in the United Kingdom - who report to the police get so overwhelmed with the investigative process that they ultimately drop out before the case concludes.

Caring for survivors on their terms

There are ways that policing and the wider criminal justice system - along with the other critical partners such as healthcare - can make changes that support both survivors’ needs and the criminal justice process. We have been involved in developing a solution that combines this survivor-focused view of reporting and investigation of sexual violence with new digital technologies. It enables a completely different experience for survivors:

ACCESS: The simplicity of one place for evidence collection and support. Survivors have a physical place in a healthcare setting separate from the police where they can have their physical and digital forensics collected and stored at the earliest opportunity and securely stored until they feel ready to report to police – if at all. This increases its veracity and credibility in court. It is a one-stop-shop for all their needs.

SUPPORT: The humanity of being surrounded by people trained to help. In addition to having access to healthcare professionals, survivors have a trained “data guardian” who guides them through the data collection process and explains their rights related to data requests. The guardians could also offer paralegal advice.

EMPOWERMENT: The security of knowing that survivors have control of their data. Survivors’ digital forensic data is downloaded rapidly and held in a secure vault independent of the police. As it is independent of the police, it is not subject to disclosure rules. They also have a secure and simple application on their phone for providing their consent to share their data as part of the investigative process. Survivors have full control over what data is shared and can always turn to the data guardian to answer their questions.

Better outcomes for survivors and society

The benefits of creating a simple, human and secure experience for survivors are both immediate and far-reaching. The key is establishing a new way of working that increases survivors trust and confidence in the professionals they are interacting with, ultimately encouraging more people to come forwards and report, and stay engaged throughout the justice process leading to more charges and convictions. Delivering an experience that makes people feel supported and safe can start them on the journey to healing sooner, and is critically important to public safety.

We believe a mindset change is required - this is not only about an investigation. It’s about giving all survivors the opportunity to access justice when they feel ready to do so – if at all. That’s why transforming their experiences should ultimately be a collaborative effort across both policing, justice, healthcare and partner agencies. That’s how to support every survivor’s unique needs in a profoundly human way.