Lawrence Police Department announces survivor-focused Special Victims unit
The Lawrence Police Department announced Tuesday it had created a Special Victims unit as part of reform of its sexual assault investigations.
The implementation of the unit, the department said in a news release, shows the department’s commitment to focusing on survivors. The move follows reporting from The Star last year that revealed the department’s failings in such cases.
It will focus on physical abuse cases, including crimes against children, crimes of a sexual nature and domestic violence.
In March, the police department announced the plan to form the unit and updated its policy for investigating sex crimes, as well as laying out reporting options for victims and emphasizing identifying serial offenders.
The department will use trauma-informed practices alongside its partnership with the Willow Victim Advocate and incoming Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez.
Lawrence interim Police Chief Anthony Brixius said they have incorporated a safe place for people who are in vulnerable times at the new facility at 5100 Overland Drive.
“Their first encounter with law enforcement must be positive,” Brixius said, “and we’re proud to have a dedicated group whose sole purpose is the well-being of these victims and their families.”
The county district attorney’s office will also have prosecutors assigned to these crimes.
“The District Attorney’s Office looks forward to collaborating with the Lawrence, Kansas Police Department,” Valdez said, “to develop a coordinated and trauma-informed response to addressing issues of sexual assault, domestic violence, and crimes against children in our community.”
Last December, a Kansas City Star investigation found the department’s investigations led to more false report cases against women reporting sexual assault and domestic violence than similar departments. The investigation also found Lawrence officers are not as well trained to handle those cases as their counterparts and have a lower arrest rate in rapes than the state average.
University of Kansas students said they were often not believed or were retraumatized when they reported sexual assault to the police department.
In February this year, following The Star’s investigation, District Attorney Charles Branson announced efforts to improve sexual assault investigations.
A lawsuit filed in October argues the constitutional rights of a woman who faced criminal charges for filing a false report of a rape — charges that were later dropped — were violated. It also argues the university violated Title IX.
The Star’s Katie Bernard contributed to this story.
