273 Peel sexual assault cases wrongly classified as unfounded, review finds
Posted Sep 29, 2017 04:41:59 PM.
Last Updated Sep 29, 2017 04:45:48 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Peel police have learned 273 of its sexual assault cases were wrongly classified as “unfounded” and are working to ensure the problem doesn’t keep happening.
Chief Jennifer Evans launched an internal review in February following a Globe and Mail report about a large number of sexual assault cases in Canada being classified as “unfounded.”
In other words, police presume “the offence reported did not occur, nor was it attempted and therefore no violations of the Criminal Code or other federal statute took place at that time or location.”
A team of senior investigators re-examined 1,016 of Peel’s sexual assault cases classified as unfounded since 2010. They found 273 cases were not unfounded and have since reclassified them.
The force’s unfounded rate has dropped from 24.3 per cent to 17.9 per cent.
“I want to assure victims that we take every sexual assault complaint seriously,” Evans said in a release.
“The review revealed that some cases in Peel were incorrectly categorized. Through this process we have enhanced our training, policies, and procedures and have strengthened our relationships with our community partners.”
Police now require authorization from supervisors before classifying cases as unfounded, and the force — along with external agencies that support victims — will conduct audits of all unfounded sexual assault cases twice a year.
