Justice Department to probe work of NYPD sex crimes unit to see if it engages in pattern of "gender-biased policing"

The U.S. Justice Department is investigating the New York Police Department's treatment of sex crime victims after concluding there is "significant justification" to do so and after receiving reports of deficiencies for more than a decade, prosecutors said Thursday.

Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, and two U.S. attorneys in New York announced the probe in a release, saying they will thoroughly review the department's Special Victims Division to gauge whether it engages in a pattern of gender-biased policing.

"Survivors of sexual assault should expect effective, trauma-informed and victim-centered investigations by police departments," Clarke said. "Based on information provided to the Justice Department, we find significant justification to investigate whether the NYPD's Special Victims Division engages in a pattern or practice of gender-biased policing."