Police raise fears over rape phone policy
A NEW policy requiring rape victims to give police full access to their mobile phones could create an unsustainable workload for front-line officers, it was claimed last night.
The move, which is being introduced by the National Police Chiefs’ Council in conjunction with the Crown Prosecution Service, is intended to deliver more consistency in the way complex sex offence cases are dealt with across England and Wales.
Complainants will be asked to sign consent forms allowing detectives to download, examine and disclose any relevant material from their phones and social media accounts.
Police officers have expressed concern that it could put an unfair burden on officers who will be “left carrying the can” if they miss anything.
Simon Kempton, lead for operational policing for the Police Federation, said: “These days a person might have any number of social media accounts. You might have communications between more than just the suspect and victim that need examining.
“That is a huge amount of data and that could end up being the job of one person. It won’t be their only case, so any increase in the workload with current resources, will be unsustainable.”
Max Hill, the Director of Public Prosecutions, defended the approach, insisting phones will only be required when “reasonable lines of inquiry” have been identified.
But Harriet Harman, the Labour MP, said she had evidence that even victims of stranger rape were being asked to hand over phones. Reading an email she had received from a woman who had been sexually assaulted, she said the police had demanded access to her social media, images and conversations stretching back five years.
Ms Harman said the victim had told her: “I had no prior or subsequent contact with the attacker. I lie awake at night worrying about the details of private conversations … that are now in the hands of the police. I feel completely as if I am the one on trial.”
Ms Harman said: “In trying to comply with disclosure rules they have gone completely over the top. It is an overreaction that will do nothing but further traumatise victims.”
A CPS spokesman said: “This dreadful experience is exactly why, working with police, we are seeking to drive some consistency in how these complex cases are dealt with. The consent forms are designed to make sure police ask only for information that is a reasonable line of inquiry.
“This must not be merely speculative and is not an exercise to find material to undermine the complainant or investigate them.”
Last night a leading victim’s representative said the new policy could lead to a rise in cases collapsing.
Claire Waxman, the victims’ commissioner for London, said: “A high percentage of the cases being dropped is because woman are refusing to allow access to very personal information, which is totally irrelevant to the investigation. Victims feel they are being investigated and put on trial.”
Four in 10 rape cases reported to police last year were dropped because of “evidential difficulties”, including a lack of victim support, up from 30 per cent in 2017 and 2016.