Victim advocates to review sexual assault cases deemed 'unfounded' by Fredericton police

A fresh set of eyes with expertise in sexual violence will review some of the sexual assault cases designated "unfounded" by the Fredericton Police Force. 

A sexual assault complaint is deemed unfounded when an investigator determines no crime occurred.

The department is one of only a few police forces across the country to adopt what's called the Philadelphia Model.

Advocates who review the files look for things like investigative bias, adding perspective from experience working on the front lines with survivors.

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In Philadelphia, where it was developed in 2000, the extra scrutiny has improved investigations and dramatically lowered the rate of cases closed with the "unfounded" designation.

Sunny Marriner, executive director of the Ottawa Rape Crisis Centre, has spent years pushing for police forces to adopt the Philadelphia Model.

"If advocates are seeing the investigative work improve, that potentially means better outcomes for Crown prosecutors trying to take cases forward to court," Marriner said.

Police chiefs across the province are reviewing cases of sexual assault designated "unfounded," after a Globe and Mail investigation found nearly one-third of sexual assault complaints in the province were deemed baseless. 

'A very objective lens'

Police chiefs have been ordered by the government to review five years' worth of unfounded cases, but some, like Fredericton police Chief Leanne Fitch, are going a step further.

"Any time that we involve our community partners, people who have certain expertise in areas we may or may not have, I think it's an opportunity to look through a very objective lens," Fitch said in an interview.

Fitch was hesitant to reveal too many details about the project.

But documents obtained through access to information legislation reveal that one person from the Fredericton Sexual Assault Centre will be responsible for reviewing a sample of "unfounded" cases.

They'll look for things like investigative bias and offer their own definition of "unfounded" and "unsubstantiated."

"I think a lot of useful information can come from our partnership on this and our subsequent dialogue," Fitch told the Fredericton Sexual Assault Centre in an email.

The centre declined an interview request for this story.

Fredericton police and the centre have partnered together on past projects, including research and training on dealing with traumatized victims.

Advocates urge police to go beyond unfounded

Fredericton's rate of "unfounded" findings ranks below both the provincial rate of 32 per cent and the national rate of 19 per cent.

But Fitch isn't sure what to make of her force's numbers just yet.

She says the Globe and Mail investigation has highlighted an inconsistency in police response.

She questions whether it's a coding issue or a systemic problem that requires better training.

"I think at the end of the day we're going to find that there's a number of contributing factors to those percentages."

Advocates like Marriner believe the "unfounded" issue is a chance to go beyond looking at coding issues to dig into some of the issues they've been raising for years.

That includes how police deal with traumatized victims, including how soon police are asking for a statement, or if they're warning victims about making frivolous or vexatious complaints.

"'Unfounded' just tells you there might be a problem," Marriner said.

"But if the cases are just being closed under another code and they're still not progressing, then we haven't addressed the investigative problems that we need to be talking about."

Saint John hasn't committed to model

The Saint John Police Force recorded a 51 per cent "unfounded" rate between 2010 and 2014, according to the Globe and Mail.

Chief John Bates has said the force was misinterpreting what "unfounded" means and has changed its practices.

"I think we've done better since then but no doubt there will be room for improvement on what is very much an administrative process at the conclusion of an investigation," Bates said in an email.

The chief said the force is aware of the Philadelphia Model. But it hasn't done enough research yet to decide if it will follow in the steps of the Fredericton Police Force.

"Once the findings of the review are tabulated and reported to the Department of Public Safety for analysis, should it be determined that practices and procedures with regard to sexual assault investigations need additional oversight I would anticipate there may be some recommendations made for consideration," Bates said.

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