NYPD Issues Response to Office of the Inspector General's Report on Special Victims Division
June 27, 2018
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) today issued its response to the March 27, 2018 report by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) for the NYPD, titled An Investigation of the NYPD's Special Victims Division — Adult Sex Crimes.
The NYPD response discusses the recent work the department is undertaking to strengthen and bolster the SVD unit; identifies recommendations made in the OIG report that the NYPD has accepted; and clarifies certain areas of the report where there are misconceptions about NYPD policies and procedures.
In addition, a top-to-bottom review of SVD is currently underway as part of recently-appointed Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea's reorganization of the Detective Bureau. This examination will include analysis and proposals to further strengthen SVD.
"Rape and sexual assault are among the most traumatic and horrific crimes someone could ever experience, and the NYPD is deeply committed to doing everything we can to not only apprehend offenders and stop assaults, but to ensure every survivor feels the safety and support they need from our department to come forward and bravely seek justice. That is our obligation," said Police Commissioner James P. O'Neill. "I've said it many times before: in most of areas of policing the NYPD is very good, in many areas we are the best – but in all areas we can always get better. The NYPD will continue to work closely and collaboratively with sexual assault victim advocates and national experts to improve our work. I thank the Inspector General for taking the time to review this issue and make recommendations. Together, we will make continued strides to best serve survivors in New York City."
In its response, the NYPD agreed with most of the OIG recommendations in either whole or part, and disagreed with others. The response also highlighted many steps the NYPD has implemented or already is in the process of implementing to bolster SVD prior to the issuance of OIG's report.
The NYPD agreed with the OIG recommendation for improving SVD facilities, and has already incorporated those recommendations into the fiscal year 2019 budget and successive budget plans. The department has also now changed its policy with respect to enhancing those felony sexual assault cases in which arrests are made by patrol personnel. Henceforth, these cases will be managed and enhanced by SVD investigators rather than personnel from the precinct detective squad in the precinct of occurrence.
The NYPD response also discusses steps the department has already implemented, or is in the process of implementing, that also simultaneously appear in the report. These areas include adopting a survivor-centered training model for SVD investigators; data privacy and security involving the Enterprise Case Management System (ECMS); and developing a wide array of publicity efforts to encourage sex assault reporting, including most recently, the "The Call Is Yours" campaign on subways and buses and social media.
Additionally, earlier this year – prior to the issuance of the OIG report – the department established a new 14-investigator cold case investigative unit managed by two supervisors. The NYPD also began the process of adding 20 additional investigators to the SVD Adult Squads, bringing the present total to 103, in response to observed crime trends and analysis. The additional 20 investigators are now in place, are expected to reduce the monthly new case load of each investigator to four-to-five, down from an average of six-to-eight new cases each month. These are manageable caseloads as recognized by the Police Executive Research Forum, a widely respected independent research organization, in their studies of other departments.
The NYPD response did express disagreement on some important issues in the OIG report. On the issue of staffing, the response discusses how investigators in SVD squads are dedicated, compassionate professionals who have an average of 6.6 years investigative experience, and the supervisors have an average of 8.1 years. In addition, the response highlights how NYPD SVD investigators are among the best-trained sex crimes investigators in the world. The response also notes that SVD has little difficulty in recruiting and retaining personnel, and that attrition in SVD is mostly a consequence of retirements, not transfers to opportunities in other units.
The NYPD response also identifies reasons why the Prummell staffing allocation model, which features prominently in the OIG report, is not a proper or accurate standard for sexual assault investigative units for a department as large and complex as the NYPD. This model, from a small county police department in Florida, has limited value in assessing a department like the NYPD, which features a number of specialized units and divisions that supplement and support the work of front line investigators – units that small town departments don't have the benefit of relying upon.
In summary, the NYPD response emphasizes the department's strong commitment to sexual assault survivors. In its ongoing effort to even better serve survivors and further strengthen their trust in the department, the NYPD partners with the advocacy community and other expert stakeholders to further its understanding of these complex investigations, the needs of survivors, and how the department can continually improve in this area. For the past four years, the police commissioner and his executive staff have met on a regular basis with these committed and insightful representatives, resulting in highly productive discussions and valuable suggestions for improving the NYPD's performance. That outreach will continue.