The Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation (CAASE) has released data analysis that indicates the Chicago police has repeatedly failed to properly respond to sex crimes.

The report from CAASE, Too Little Too Late? The CPD’s Response to Sex Crimes, looked at data compiled from 2010 through 2019.

“We found that survivors who reported to the Chicago Police Department (CPD) faced grossly inadequate responses,” says the report. “Our findings align with the experiences of survivors and our legal staff who represent them.”

CAASE Study and the City’s Police Response

According to the analysis, up to 90% of sexual assault reports made to Chicago authorities did not culminate with an arrest of a perpetrator. Of the 10 to 20% of sexual assault survivors who did see charges brought against their perpetrators, the apprehension took weeks or months, which was much longer than it took for victims of other crimes to see alleged offenders caught.

Survivors of sexual abuse didn’t see an arrest made until anywhere between 13 and 72 days after the assault, if any arrest was made at all, according to the report. The data allegedly was difficult to analyze due to the fact that a report date was not listed in the city’s public safety database and only in the state’s attorney’s database. It’s known that some survivors of sexual assault or sexual abuse come forth with accusations months or years after they were victimized.

Other violent crimes, including first degree murder, armed robbery and aggravated battery reported arrests were made between 3 and 33 days.

In fact, aggravated criminal sexual assault cases took about 21 days before an arrest was made compared to criminal sexual assault, which the CAASE said is a most common form of rape, took more than 43 days before the alleged offender was arrested. Criminal sexual assault is a term usually used in the even the offender has not brandished a weapon.

ABC affiliate Channel 7 of Chicago reports that the Chicago Police Department responded to the CAASE report by saying it has reworked its investigation practices to be more victim-centered and trauma-informed in addition to being evidence-based, which translates to police detectives being more sensitive to a victim who may have memory impairment due to the trauma of the assault.

Angela Rose is the founder and executive director of Promoting Awareness Victim Empowerment (PAVE). She told ABC Channel 7 that she was sexually assaulted and kidnapped when she was just 17 years old in 1996. She told the television station that she had been shopping at the Woodfield Mall in Schaumberg when she was assaulted, and after she told the police what happened to her, a detective accused her of lying.

“Law enforcement may see things as embellishing or making things up, when in fact it is the neurological response in a survivor’s brain, so learning these things are important,” Rose told Channel 7.

The Chicago Police Department did say they started to instruct a class through the training academy in 2018 that addresses the brain’s reaction to trauma and how detectives need to be sensitive to trauma victims. Illinois enacted a new state law requiring the new training, and Chicago authorities told the Chicago Tribune that both new recruits and seasoned detectives receive such insightful instruction.

CAASE Call to Action

The CAASE notes that because between 80 and 90% of reported sexual assaults end with the initial report that more must be done to identify steps that can help survivors.

According to CAASE, the sole organization that receives any type of city funding for sexual assault survivor care is the Chicago Children’s Advocacy Center. CAASE supports the ask of the Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence, which requests one week of police funding be contributed to services for those who survive gender-based violence and would amount to around $35 million.

“Prevention initiatives are the only way to stop gender-based violence, including sexual harm and domestic violence, from occurring in the first place and help survivors heal if it occurs,” says CAASE in its report.

Suggested Chicago Police Department Changes

After conducting its analysis of the data, CAASE suggested several areas of improvement for the city of Chicago, including trying to prevent sexual assault from occurring in the first place.

The organization suggested the Chicago online portal include fields for a report date, arrest date and investigating unit to be entered. CAASE also suggests the Chicago authorities and any other involved city department record data regarding the victim’s relationship to the offender, the victim’s age, and other pertinent factors about the case.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.