Police Decision-Making in Sexual Assault Investigations: The Importance of Rapport and Relationships to Minimize Secondary Victimization

Background and Purpose: In the criminal justice system, countless decisions are made each and every day by victims of crime, police officers, prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, corrections, parole, and probation officials.  The majority of these decisions occur outside the watchful eye of the general public and without context or an in-depth understanding of the justice system or her processes.  This qualitative study explored how Criminal Investigative Division investigators in a Midwestern metropolitan police department describe their experiences investigating allegations of sexual assault.  Specifically, the study explored how investigators describe the decision-making process in the founding or unfounding of sexual assault case investigations in their jurisdiction, whether or not these decisions and the processing of cases are principled or arbitrary, and how organizational context influences the handling of these cases including their interactions and engagement with sex assault victims.

Methods: Three in-depth semi-structured digitally recorded interviews were conducted with a sample of certified law enforcement officers assigned to the Criminal Investigative Division in a major, Midwestern metropolitan police department.  Triangulation was achieved with the addition of document review and observation.  This purposive sample was comprised of two male officers with 21 years’ experience, on average, and both possessing Bachelor’s degrees in criminal justice. Interviews elicited information about the participants’ career, training, and experience in law enforcement, organizational context (i.e., culture, philosophy, leadership style, and governance), beliefs about their role, purpose, or function, case processing, the decision-making process particularly in the founding or unfounding of cases, and victim engagement.  Interviews were transcribed verbatim, member-checked, and then thematically coded with a constant compared method employed. Atlas.ti was utilized for this qualitative data analysis.

Results: Data analysis reveals the importance of understanding an organization’s operating environment and the influence that has on police decision-making.  Further, data suggest that decision-making, at least in this police department, is more principled than arbitrary, more collaborative than independent.  Participants noted a very strong professional ethical compass, that is, “working their cases in the right way” and “for the right reasons.”  Finally, the importance of rapport and relationships with crime victims emerged as one of the pre-eminent themes.  

Conclusions and Implications: Findings highlight the importance of human relationships and rapport building, suggesting an approach to policing that both honors and respects basic human and civil rights, and the dignity and worth of the person.  Further research is necessary to determine the strength of this association and its effect(s) on minimizing secondary victimization.