Reminder: We Believe Survivors
Image description: Banner with text, ‘We Believe Survivors’ on a background of northern lights
In May, RCMP investigated a Whitehorse high school student for sexual assault and the RCMP chose not to lay charges.
CBC reported this week that the student under investigation has filed a defamation lawsuit and the first sentence in the article claims that a student ‘falsely reported’ the sexual assault:
”A Whitehorse youth falsely accused on Facebook of sexually assaulting fellow students at F.H. Collins Secondary School has filed a defamation lawsuit against the author of the post.”
Reminders:
Image description: Screenshot of a CBC article with text: ”A Whitehorse youth falsely accused on Facebook of sexually assaulting fellow students at F.H. Collins Secondary School has filed a defamation lawsuit against the author of the post.” ‘#UseTheRightWords’ has been added at the top and the word ‘falsely’ has been crossed off with a red line. Text has been added to the bottom of the image, ‘but no charges were laid’, to make the original sentence read: ”A Whitehorse youth accused on Facebook of sexually assaulting fellow students at F.H. Collins Secondary School but no chargers were laid has filed a defamation lawsuit against the author of the post.”
No charges laid is not false reporting
There is an ocean of difference between false reporting - someone being charged by the police for making a false report - and police choosing not to lay charges.
False reporting is a crime. If you make a false report to police, they can choose to lay a false reporting charge.
Of the miniscule amount of sexual assaults that even get reported to the police very few have charges laid.
Image Description: Infographic with a large wheel and text. “There are 460 000 sexual assaults in Canada every year. Out of every 1000 sexual assaults:
33 are reported to the police
29 are recorded as a crime
12 have charges laid
6 are prosecuted
3 lead to conviction
997 assailants walk free
Source: Johnson, “Limits of a Criminal Justice Response:Trends in Police and Court Proecessing of Sexual Assault,” in Sheehy, Sexual Assault in Canada: Law, Legal Practice and Women’s Activism, 2012
Image created by YWCA Canada
There are 460 000 sexual assaults in Canada every year. Out of every 1000 sexual assaults:
“False reporting is really rare.”
33 are reported to the police
29 are recorded as a crime
12 have charges laid
6 are prosecuted
3 lead to conviction
997 assailants walk free
(Source: Johnson, “Limits of a Criminal Justice Response:Trends in Police and Court Proecessing of Sexual Assault,” in Sheehy, Sexual Assault in Canada: Law, Legal Practice and Women’s Activism, 2012)
Even though ‘women lie about sexual assault because ________’ can sadly be heard in almost every conversation about sexual violence, false reporting is really rare, with only 2-8% of sexual assault reports found to be false.
The bigger issue is why so few survivors of sexual assault ever share their experience with the police.
Unfounded
We’ve been talking a lot about the massive amount of sexual assault cases brought to police that are labelled ‘unfounded’.
Unfounded just means that the case is found to be baseless. It’s a case file coding used in Canadian policing. If you are a survivor who makes a police report and after an investigation, your case is labelled as ‘unfounded’ it means that there will not be charges laid, a trial, or a verdict.
Labelling a case ‘unfounded’ is very different from when it’s labelled a ‘false report’.
From Robyn Doolittle’s unfounded investigation:
“There are many ways to shut a case without laying a charge. Not enough evidence? There’s a closure code for that. Complainant doesn’t want to proceed with charges? There’s a code for that, too. One of every five sexual-assault allegations in Canada is dismissed as baseless and thus unfounded. The result is a national unfounded rate of 19.39 per cent – nearly twice as high as it is for physical assault (10.84 per cent), and dramatically higher than that of other types of crime.
When complaints of sexual assault are dismissed with such frequency, it is a sign of deeper flaws in the investigative process: inadequate training for police; dated interviewing techniques that do not take into account the effect that trauma can have on memory; and the persistence of rape myths among law-enforcement officials.”
In the Yukon, the unfounded rate is higher than the national average at 25%.
There is a proven way to lower unfounded rates and have police investigate sexual assault cases: Advocate Case Review, also called the Philadelphia Model. Heartbreakingly, RCMP Headquarters shut down Yukon Advocate Case review in February 2021 after three years of work and advocacy from survivors.
Read more about the nuts and bolts of case review and why it works here.
Only 5% of Survivors report to the police
Between 14% (Statistics Canada, 2009) and 5% (Statistics Canada, 2014) survivors reported their sexual assaults to the police.
When survivors do report to the police, 78% of survivors shared that they had a negative experience.
Image Description: Infographic with text on a notepad - “Why victims don’t report sexual assault to police:
Feeling young and powerless - 56%
Shame - 40%
Self-blame - 29%
Desire to move on - 26%
Belief that reporting wouldn’t do any good - 21%
Not wanting to turn in a family member - 19%
Effect on future relationships - 18%
Afraid of further damage from the attacker - 15%
Afraid of the legal process - 11%
Knew the person and didn’t want to destroy their life - 9%"
From a 2015 Ipsos Reid poll:
Why victims don’t report sexual assault to police:
Feeling young and powerless - 56%
Shame - 40%
Self-blame - 29%
Desire to move on - 26%
Belief that reporting wouldn’t do any good - 21%
Not wanting to turn in a family member - 19%
Effect on future relationships - 18%
Afraid of further damage from the attacker - 15%
Afraid of the legal process - 11%
Knew the person and didn’t want to destroy their life - 9%
If you are oppressed (LGBQT2SAI+, poor, Indigenous, disabled, racialized, and many other ways people are marginalized), reporting to police can have even more barriers.
Rakhi Ruparelia’s research suggests “that when women of colour report violence, particularly rape, their experiences are often taken less seriously within the criminal justice system.”
Most Survivors know the person who assaulted them
Stranger danger is a myth.
80% of survivors know the person who assaulted them. EIGHTY 👏 PERCENT 👏!
Our homes are the most dangerous place. Not dark alleys.
Reread the reasons above about why so few survivors report to the police. Survivors are feeling powerless, shame, blame, wanting to move on, worried about further violence, worried about hurting loved ones, and are fearful of the legal process or having police involvement destroy their life.
Victim blaming created a culture of silence about sexual assault.
Taking Action
We know the depressing facts. What’s next?
Unlearn rape myths every single day. Here’s some excellent places to start:
Be ready to help a friend if they let you know they’ve been sexually assaulted
Raise kids in your life to be consent champions
JOURNALISTS! The Femifesto collective has already created a free short easy resource for journalists: Use The Right Words
DWS Has Got Your Back
Victim blaming getting you down? DWS has got your back 24 hours a day.
Survivors and their allies can call DWS’ 24 Hour Support Line for confidential listening and advocacy - 867.993.5086.
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