Justice system betrays sexual violence survivors, says federal advocate for victims of crime
CBC
A report from Canada’s victims of crime advocate says survivors of sexual violence are being systemically betrayed by the criminal justice system as allegations are often disbelieved and cases are regularly delayed or dropped.
These are just some of the findings from a nearly 300-page report entitled Rethinking Justice for Survivors of Sexual Violence: A Systemic Investigation.
The report by Benjamin Roebuck, the federal ombudsperson for victims of crime, is the result of more than 3,000 interviews, surveys and case reviews conducted since March 2024.
It examines how victims of sexual violence are treated throughout the justice system; whether their allegations are believed; what resources they have access to; and how their membership in a vulnerable group or geographic location impacts their experience.
“The harm is so well recognized that police officers and Crown attorneys regularly caution survivors against reporting or pursuing charges. The administration of justice is in open disrepute,” Roebuck said in his foreword to the report.
The report says there are systemic issues across the justice system that need to be addressed in order to encourage victims to come forward and to prevent them from being re-traumatized by that system when they do.
"One survivor we interviewed talked about choosing to report knowing that it would be a difficult process, that it could cause harm, but doing it to protect the public. It's a sacred trust that people are putting in the system," Roebuck said Wednesday in Ottawa.
“I do honour the fact that there are many good-hearted, effective people working across the system, but there are clear points that need to change so that survivors are better protected."
Among the 1,000 survivors of sexual violence who participated in a survey for Roebuck's report, 93 per cent said they feared police wouldn't believe them if they came forward.
Only 51 per cent of the 1,000 survivors reported the crimes against them to police; 102 of those cases went to trial, resulting in just 70 convictions.
To improve those outcomes, the report makes 43 recommendations grouped into 10 categories. Chief among those recommendations is the need to fully investigate allegations of sexual violence reported to police. That won't happen, the report says, until "the system confronts the structural conditions silencing survivors."
"Reporting sexual violence is often framed as an individual choice, but survivors consistently indicate that their silence is in response to systemic barriers, institutional failures and inequality rather than personal unwillingness," the report says.
To encourage victims to speak out, the report recommends providing specific training to police and courts on the unique needs of sexual assault survivors based on sex, gender, age, immigration status, income, race, culture, religion and mental health.
The report also calls on law enforcement to abandon the use of "KGB statements": sworn and recorded video statements by victims that are taken by police to detail allegations that can be used in court if an alleged victim changes their testimony.
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