Rhode Island Police: sex assault happens more than people think

In his 25 years on the Cranston Police Department, Captain Steven Robertson thinks it has gotten easier for victims to report crimes of sex abuse, but “we still have a ways to go.”

Last week, the Sexual Assault and Trauma Resource Center of Rhode Island and state Department of Health released a study, “Rape in Rhode Island, A Report to the State.” According to the center, one out of every eight or over 56,000 women in Rhode Island has been a victim of forcible rape sometime in her lifetime. The number doesn’t deal with child molestation, statutory rape or men and boys.

“That is why one in eight is so conservative,” said Kate Williams, the Cranston police law enforcement advocate that handles domestic abuse and sexual assault cases. “Most are [not the victim of] forcible rape, especially children.” She says she receives more complaints regarding children. There may be a few forcible rapes reported, she says, but it is “certainly a small number.”

Robertson said, usually with kids their abuser is “part of their support group.”

“The guy jumping out of the bushes is rare, and it is usually the last thing we look for,” he said. The same applies to adults, he says.

Regardless, the SATRC announcement is the first time statewide data on the prevalence of rape has been released.

Cranston Police do not keep statistics by type of sex crime. In 2002, for minors, there were 81 sex crime complaints with 76 eventually not facing charges and five convictions. For adults in 2002, 27 complaints were made and 17 were not charged. There are three cases pending in court, one before a grand jury and two convictions. The courts dismissed four. Of the reports dismissed, Robertson said investigations either proved the allegations untrue or there was probable cause but no proof.

The numbers, according to Robertson and Williams, are consistent from year to year. Williams said the statistics never go down, noting also that the numbers only include those who file a police report.

“People go to the hospital but don’t report it,” she said. She estimates handling 35 domestic abuse and three sex assault cases per month.

Robertson credits the work of Williams and Al Corrente, the detective in charge of investigating domestic abuse and sexual assault with making reporting the crimes a little easier. Cranston, along with the Warwick Police Department, are the only two departments in the state with a full-time victims’ advocate. There are two additional advocates that float in the East Bay and Northern Rhode Island regions. Williams’ position is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice under the Violence Against Women Act that is administered by the Elizabeth Buffum Chace House. The grant was recently renewed for the next four years. Anytime Cranston officers are contacted by a victim, Williams is told.

“We just don’t wait until there is an arrest,” she said. Robertson says Williams also steers victims through the court process.

“It can be intimidating, even coming into the police station,” he said.

Robertson also credits the media, especially the recently reported sex abuse cases within the Catholic Church, as making coming forward easier for victims. Again, though, there is a ways to go, he says.

“We still need to get the word out and to show victims that there are people who care,” he said.

Educating youngsters and opening communication with school resource officers is key, too, he continued. He would also like to see each department in the state with an advocate. He called Williams’ a “tremendous, tremendous resource.” Typically, Williams says, time passes between the assault and the police report.

“With the way the trauma works there is a lot of guilt, shame and fear,” Williams said.

In addition to improving education, Williams said more agencies are needed to offer counseling.

The 1 in 8 study is based on numbers from the National Women’s Study and the National Violence Against Women Study. Combining the data shows that 13.4 percent of women nationally have been victims of forcible rape. The Rhode Island average is 13.2 percent. The studies found that risk of having been raped was related to a woman’s current age, race/ethnicity and geographic region. Also, the studies found the majority of rapes occurred when they were under 18. The statistics were compiled during telephone surveys. SATRC hosted a press conference at the state department of health last week to announce survey findings and to introduce an eight-step program to reduce incidences of sexual violence.

The event was attended by community and state officials including Senator Jack Reed, Rep. Patrick Kennedy, Attorney General Patrick Lynch, State Police Colonel Steven Pare, Dr. Patricia Nolan, director of the state department of health, and Peg Langhammer, executive director of SATRC.

Nolan called sexual assault the “silent violent epidemic.” The report states, “Our findings clearly demonstrate the fact that Rhode Island has a substantial rape problem, as reflected by our conservative estimate….”

Nolan called sexual assault a serious public health threat that causes physical, psychological and emotional damage. The report estimates, of the 56,000 women, 17,000 developed post-traumatic stress disorder, 12,000 suffer major depression, 7,300 attempted suicide and 6,800 reported the use of hard drugs (other than cocaine, which 8,700 reported using) in their lifetime. Changing those statistics, said Nolan, means changing the way the community thinks.