Wednesday, December 05, 2012
British sex assault victim told 'you don't need the police' by emergency supervisor before she was subjected to two-hour rape
A 999 control room supervisor is facing gross misconduct proceedings after he told a woman 'you don’t need the police' shortly before she was raped.
The victim suffered a harrowing two-hour ordeal while her terrified children were listening in the next room.
She dialled 999 but abandoned the call after the 19-year-old attacker grabbed her around the throat. The operator heard a struggle and a man arguing.
Fifteen minutes later a supervisor called her back and asked a series of ‘closed’ questions before concluding: 'You don’t need the police.'
But the man could be heard whispering in the background forcing her to say everything was fine before hanging up and committing the rape in Southampton in February. He was later jailed for eight years.
An IPCC report yesterday said a simple computer check would have told the supervisor the woman was a known victim of domestic violence. But the watchdog found that an entry on the call log said background checks had been done when they had not.
Hampshire Constabulary and the supervisor had 'gravely' let down the woman, said the IPCC. The supervisor could now face the sack.
Hampshire Assistant Chief Constable David Pryde told the Daily Mirror: 'We failed to provide the appropriate level of service and I am deeply sorry.'
But he added the report said it was 'not due to systematic or organisational failings'.
IPCC Commissioner Mike Franklin said: 'It is not possible to say with any certainty whether police attendance would have prevented this very serious sexual assault.
'However, what is clear is that this woman, who was in a vulnerable position, was gravely let down by Hampshire Constabulary and the control room supervisor when she needed their assistance.'
Original report here
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1 comment:
This appears to have happened to a subject of Her Majesty, who according to the laws of her country "should be able to rely upon the sovereign for her protection".
An American citizen in this situation could well have themselves to blame, had they chosen to go among the wolves unarmed. Of course, you can call the police, but our 9-1-1 operators are frequently no more attentive to signs of distress, and even if they are, remember: "When seconds count, the police are only minutes away!"
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