On 22 May 2015 details of an out of Court settlement were reported after a Police Force failed to investigate a woman’s complaint of rape and instead arrested her.
The woman was raped in 2012. She had mental health problems and had been in trouble with the Police in the past. It was said that the Officers who took the complaint of rape “were not very sympathetic”. Police Officers later arrested the woman who was 17 at the time of the rape in 2012 on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. They suspected she had lied. The Police however failed to carry out proper forensic tests on the evidence available and Hampshire Constabulary later apologised for letting the rape victim down. The victim struggled with not having been believed by the Police and following her arrest tried to commit suicide twice.
Following further investigation the victim’s attacker was convicted and jailed for 5 years in 2013 for the rape.
Hampshire Constabulary have apologised for their poor handling of the case and stated significant changes have been made to the way sexual assault cases are now handled by the Force.
This is not the first time a UK Police Force has paid compensation to a rape victim. There have been a number of previous cases including the Metropolitan Police being ordered in 2013 to pay compensation to two victims of John Worboys who was jailed for life in 2009 after committing more than one hundred rapes. John Worboys was a London Taxi Driver who carried out more than one hundred rapes and sexual assaults using alcohol and drugs to stupefy his victims during a 6 year campaign. He often pretended to have had a large lottery win in order to persuade single women he picked up in his taxi to celebrate with a glass of doped Champagne.
Two of the victims who remain anonymous for reporting purposes made complaints to the Metropolitan Police of rape relatively early in Worboys 6 year campaign. As a result of significant failings by the Police to properly investigate the rapes crucial opportunities to catch Worboys were lost and it is believed he went on to commit offences against one hundred and five women who were vulnerable sitting in the back of his cab late at night on their way home.
The two victims of Worboys who brought cases against the Metropolitan Police were together awarded more than £40,000.00 in damages. In May 2015 the Court of Appeal heard the Metropolitan Police’s appeal against the ruling. The Court of Appeal’s decision on whether the Metropolitan Police should pay compensation in such circumstances is awaited.
Blog by Richard Hardy, Head of Police Misconduct