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Third Party Reporting available for sexualized violence victims
Think about a secret you have. Something you’ve told very few people, if any. What are the reasons that you haven’t shared your secret?
Have you told someone in the past and experienced a negative response? Did you wish you didn’t tell, because at the very second your secret was disclosed, you lost all control over what happened next? Were you disbelieved or questioned about your credibility? Is the secret confusing to you, which makes it harder to explain to others?
For those who have experienced sexualized violence, these are many of the considerations that prevent people from coming forward.
Sexualized assault (SA) is deliberate and intentional in its perpetration, often planned in advance with anticipation of resistance, and strategized ways to overcome it – think alcohol, for example.
SA is often perpetrated when and where no one can witness or intervene. After an assault there is opportunity to access medical care and evidence collection, but the process can feel invasive and re-traumatizing. For that reason, many people choose to decline these services. Not to mention the scrutiny that many face when coming forward.
Conviction rates amount to three per cent of police reported sexualized assaults. These are just some of the reasons that victims are hesitant to engage with the criminal justice system. With all this to consider, how does a person come forward and feel safe about disclosing their experience?
This is where Third Party Reporting (TPR) becomes vital for those who want to report to RCMP but are unprepared to engage in the system.
TPR is a process by which a person can submit information about their experience anonymously through and with the support of Community Based Victim Services (CBVS). Community Based Victim Services provides specialized support for anyone who has experienced any form of gender-based violence by providing information about options for legal, medical, and community assistance, and the emotional support to pursue whichever avenue of assistance might be appropriate and comfortable to them.
When a person expresses interest in TPR as an option, an assessment is done to ensure that it is appropriate for the circumstances, for example, that no one is at imminent risk of harm.
The victim then fills out a report with CBVS including information about the assault, the perpetrator if known, and any specific details that they can remember. They omit any information that would identify them as the victim.
The victim’s identifying information stays with CBVS, who assign the file a file number. The rest of the report is provided to a designated RCMP member who then enters the information into databases for cross reference, and identification of trends and patterns of perpetration.
The RCMP member reviews the file to determine if there is imminent risk of harm to the victim or others. The RCMP member also assesses whether there is the possibility of police investigation and recommendation of charges if the victim is willing to come forward. If RCMP thinks the information is viable for charge approval, they ask CBVS to invite the victim to come forward to make a full report.
The victim again has the opportunity to decide for themselves what they would like to do. They could simply decide to leave it at a TPR, or they could decide that they are ready and willing to come forward. It’s important to know that an investigation does not begin until a full report is provided in person by the victim.
So, what are the benefits of this practice?
The victim has the opportunity to share their experience with police. They remain anonymous, and can maintain control of the information until they decide otherwise. And, police receive information that they would not otherwise have.
On average, a perpetrator will offend six times before anyone comes forward. Because of this reality, when police receive third party information it can help determine if a serial perpetrator is operating in a local area, or across the province. Serial perpetrators are known to travel across jurisdictions, and because the Third Party Reporting protocol is province-wide in B.C., it allows police to also track reports across municipal and RCMP jurisdictions.
Invariably, when speaking about TPR the question of false reports come up. As a vastly under-reported crime, the chances that a false report would get through an investigation, past Crown charge approval, and through a trial to gain a conviction is pretty slim. Aside from the slim possibility of conviction, there is very little legal or reputational consequence for false reports specific to TPR.
There are a number of checks in place to protect anonymity for both the accused and the victim. Again, no formal investigation begins, unless the victim decides to make a full report. TPR was designed to allow for more control over how someone engages with the system with safety and dignity.
Until a cultural attitude of holding perpetrators and perpetrators alone accountable emerges, Third Party Reporting is a critical option for those who’ve experienced the violation of sexualized assault.
Community Based Victim Services is part of Summit Community Services Society, located at 125-10th Avenue South, Cranbrook. Contact number is 250-489-3114.
Lead image from Ending Violence BC
– Katie Chave is Community Based Victim Services Coordinator with Summit Community Services Society