Task force never had mandate to reopen ‘unfounded’ older assault cases, co-chair says

Review of ‘unfounded’ cases looking for trends in assault investigations

WATERLOO REGION — An audit of random “unfounded” sexual assault cases was not intended to reopen old cases, says the cochair of a task force created by police to look into the cases.

The purpose was to examine the 78 cases “at a macro level” and suggest additional training for police in the future, said Sara Casselman, executive director of the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region.

“We are advocates for survivors during this whole process,” she said.

Casselman was responding to a story in Friday’s Record in which Waterloo Regional Police Chief Bryan Larkin said the task force would not be reopening historical cases.

She said the task force did not have a mandate to reopen individual cases.

“That was not the purpose of the review,” she said.

“We wanted to look for trends and training themes and areas for improvement.”

The 40-person task force was divided into two groups — one tasked with examining 78 historical cases and the other looking at criteria police could use to investigate sexual assault cases.

The second working group will recommend that sexual assault cases be reviewed every quarter by a small group of people who work as advocates for survivors.

Casselman said the task force looking at the historical cases recently completed its report.

She said the chief has yet to read it.

Casselman said many of the people who reported assaults to police years ago have moved on with their lives.

The trauma is never forgotten, but the task force did not intend for them relive the incident, she said.

Statistics show that of 33 sexual assaults reported to police, only three result in conviction, she said.

Casselman said once the report is presented to all members of the task force — that is expected to happen next month — she will speak to recommendations made by the working group on improving sexual assault investigations.

Some of the recommendations centre on a more victim-centred approach when speaking with sexual assault survivors and enhanced trauma interviewing skills.

Larkin created the task force last year after a Globe and Mail investigation found that police dismiss one out of every five sex assault claims as unfounded and no charges are laid.

Locally, the unfounded rate was 27 per cent from 2010 to 2014, higher than the national average at 19 per cent.