Not just the Met: Fury as Kent Police class rape and sexual assault as 'non-emergency' crimes

[IwantToRetire]

A police force has come under fire for posters branding rape and sexual assault as "non emergency" crimes.

Sex crimes were listed alongside anti-social behaviour and road accidents on the poster advertising Kent Police's web page for reporting low-level crimes.

Domestic abuse was also featured on the non-urgent list, prompting furious members of the public to accuse the force of downplaying violent crime which predominantly impacts women and girls.

The force's Maidstone squad stuck the print-out poster on the front door of their police station, with the heading: "The following non-emergency enquiries can be reported online via the Kent Police website."

Rape and sexual assault was listed second from last beneath "compliments and requests", "antisocial behaviour" and fraud.

Hate crime and missing people were also included on the list of so-called non-emergencies.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/fury-police-force-classes-rape-29520873

The notice posted on the door of a police station has since been removed.

But it should never have happened.

Which is worse, that underfunding is so extreme virtually every crime is classed as non emergency or that it reflects the culture of the police.

Domestic abuse was also featured on the non-urgent list, prompting furious members of the public to accuse the force of downplaying violent crime which predominantly impacts women and girls.

And that impact is often death.

I'm stunned but not really.

OK, I can see how this looks, but weren’t they just trying to give information about how to contact them to report anything that doesn’t warrant a 999 call? I think a lot of women havering about reporting domestic abuse or a sexual assault might be more inclined to use a website than make a phone call.

Deeply offensive and disturbing at the same time,

What the hell is going on here 😳??

No wonder are policing system is broken is left wanting...

Court system is some ways Is fxcked too ,

Financial serious crimes seems to warrant heavier prison sentences than anything to with sexual assault, Rape Or Domestic Abuse,

It's a Capitalist society
Cash is king , etc ect
This obviously reflects in our Police/ courts system,
Speaks volumes about how morally corrupt our society is,
What a shit show. ...

This is my reading, too. Not the best worded poster, but if someone is reporting a crime after the fact then you don't need a blues-and-twos response (i.e. an emergency in that moment).

Clearly 999 would be appropriate to report a rape, or DV that is in progress at the time where police could stop the crime and search for/ arrest the perpetrator.

They aren't saying these aren't serious crimes, it's about whether an immediate response is required.

I'm inclined to agree. I would classify an emergency as something that is taking place in that moment which is causing danger to life and limb.

However this could cover rape and domestic assault (i.e. neighbours calling the police over hearing a domestic assault). So 999 is appropriate in those instances.

But if someone is reporting domestic abuse e.g. after they've left someone, then 999 probably isn't needed in that instance.

It's very clumsily done and thoughtless, but I don't think this is done to minimise those crimes.

Hmm, it can take a lot of courage to go to a police station to report rape/sex assault/ DV, not sure it’s ok to turn someone away at that point. Plus, surely these investigations often need to examine the victim asap? Not just clumsy, but actually not well thought through either.

It does, but I can see why this poster might be useful if the station is closed. Unfortunately lots of stations have shut entirely or have stopped opening to the public thanks to budget cuts, like my nearest police station which is used as offices etc but doesn't have anywhere for the public to actually go in to report a crime.

Evidence should be gathered as quickly as possible or it is lost, but these forensic examinations aren't usually carried out at police stations to the best of my knowledge, they're done by medical professionals in clinics, hospitals, SARCs etc where any woman can walk in and ask for help, there is no police referral needed.

The bar for the police is so low you couldn't limbo under it. Bless they wrote a shit sign, awwww maybe it meant x. Well maybe they need to communicate better. I can think of at least three way to communicate what people think this sign means and not make victims of rape and DV feel like they aren't important.

The police can't be bothered to treat victims of crime, particularly female ones, as important. And considering the way rape is treated, and DV, we know they don't. It's an exemplar of a larger issue, not an isolated lack of writing skills.

I thought that for an examination following a rape to be successful, women are advised not to shower before hand and have the exam done ASAP. So what happens to these women who report rapes online? Are they just supposed to avoid washing themselves for a couple of days until an officer eventually gets back to them or do they risk washing away evidence?

To be honest, given how useless the police are when it comes to violence against women and girls, it probably won't make much difference if you email or call them. I have zero trust in the police right now.

I'm astonished at some of the responses.

Maybe on re-reading the sign they should have differentiated between an "enquiry" and reporting a crime.

Many women having suffered being raped or subjected to domestic violence are probably in need of immediate help and support. The idea that they will just have a little think about and then decide "I know I will go on line and just let them know I have been physically harmed by a man"

And as someone upthread has said in both cases, such there be a prosecution, it is vital that evidence is collected as quickly as possible. No wonder the CPS keeps saying this case isn't strong enough, if all they have got is some formed filled in on line. The mere act of doing that implies it cant have been that traumatic.

Its a shame really that there are more SARCs and that they are not made available to not just victims of rape but also domestic violence. They offer confidently medical treatment and are trained to collect forensic evidence, and the woman does not have to talk to the police.

But you would have to spend hours trying to track these down online.

I hope the local MP investigates, because if this notice is a result of staff shortages something needs to be done, but if it is a result of the level of priority police treat crimes there should be an investigation.

It depends if it has been a historic report of rape. Some people report rapes that have happened years/months ago. They were not ready to report before - but are now. If that's the case, they will be outside of the forensic window.

Some victims/survivors also prefer to report it by writing it down rather than phoning it in. I think that they should be given every option to be able to report it by any method they feel comfortable with.

there are lots of reasons why victims/survivors may find it easier to report on line and not via a phone call.

They may be in a controlling DV relationship and not able to speak openly on a phone.

They may not want to talk about it on a phone call with a stranger, but prefer to write it themselves

They may live in a care facility and not be able to speak openly in the premises - especially if the suspect is on the care staff

They may be a school pupil who doesn't want to make a phone call from home (suspect may be living at their address). Also can't make a phone call from school in case they are overheard.

The notice is not saying that all rapes have to be reported this way - but they can if the victim/survivor feels that this is a better way for them to do it.

I agree that it is badly worded - and if it is within the forensic window it should be an emergency. We always deal with them as an emergency when they are reported - and then develop the investigation strategy after this.

The poster is crap but making an online report or a crime via a web chat can actually be a much quicker process than sitting a police station waiting for an officer to become available.

The offence will probably be recorded quicker and if urgent enquiries need to be made/ visit made urgently this should be flagged up at the point of recording and a log for attendance created.

Like I said the poster is terrible but online reporting does not mean that the offence will be treated any less seriously.

Agree. The wording was clumsy, but the intention was a good one. The poster needs re-wording to make it clear that this is being offered as an option for those who prefer it. And that assaults that where there may still be forensic evidence should be reported urgently.