Police review handling of rape investigations
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One of Britain's most senior police officers has ordered an urgent inquiry into the handling of rape allegations following evidence that the number of convictions for rape is falling.
One of Britain's most senior police officers has ordered an urgent inquiry into the handling of rape allegations following evidence that the number of convictions for rape is falling.
Sir Ian Blair, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, who has written a book on rape investigations, has called for a review of rape cases in London.
Sir Ian has expressed concerns about the growing number of complaints of rape by women that are classified as "no-crimes" and result in no further action from the police.
The Met review comes after a Home Office study found that the number of rapes reported annually in Britain was at an all-time high of 11,700 - of which only one in 20 led to a criminal conviction - an all-time low.
According to the study, the real number of rapes per year was at least 47,000; at least a quarter of the female population had suffered rape or attempted rape and eight out of 10 attacks involved someone known to the victim.
The report said that psychologists believed drink and drug-taking had changed attitudes to rape - a key factor in the rise of "no-crime" cases was the increasing number of women being attacked after heavy drinking who then had little recollection of what had happened, making prosecution impossible.
The Met was thought to be considering a change to its policies on rape cases by which less evidence that a crime had been committed would be required for an investigation to be launched.
Brian Paddick, deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, who has been asked to head the review, said: "It is quite right that the Commissioner is deeply concerned about this issue and he has asked for an urgent review."
Following a number of high-profile cases, the Government overhauled rape laws in 2002 in an effort to increase conviction rates and "rebalance the system in favour of victims".
However, there are fears by some groups that innocent men accused of rape could automatically be regarded as guilty.
A Met spokesman said: "We are carrying out a review concerning the numbers of successful prosecutions for rape. As part of this process, we will be reviewing the number of rape allegations which are [not classified as crimes] and trying to establish why there are variations between boroughs in this category."