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POLICE RESPONSE TO CRIME VICTIMS
Police Response to Crime Victims
Policy Issue and Solution Paper: Final Assignment
Jade M. Roy
Liberty University
CJUS 601
Dr. Nancy Alleyne
October 14, 2022
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POLICE RESPONSE TO CRIME VICTIMS
Abstract
As society has evolved over the years, so has the criminal justice system. We have seen system
improvements in how law enforcement officers respond to crimes. This has been aided by the
evolution of technology, such as radio equipment, the internet, drones, and more. However,
problems remain in the criminal justice system’s response to victim crimes in sexual assault,
domestic violence, and human trafficking cases. Most notably, law enforcement officers have
been understaffed and untrained for many years while agencies have increasingly been
overwhelmed by the influx of violent crime in their communities. These factors have limited law
enforcement’s ability to identify areas needing improvement in comprehensive victim crime
training, in-depth knowledge of the crimes, and trauma-informed responses to special victims.
Furthermore, the evolution of the Internet has complicated matters by leading to increased sexual
exploitation and abuse rates of minor children and adults. This paper explores issues associated
with the criminal justice response to victim crimes, including sexual assault, domestic violence,
and human trafficking, the significance of the problem, and policy solutions to improve the
response.
Keywords: victim-centered, trauma-informed, human trafficking, multidiscipline,
evidence-based, sexual exploitation
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In the past, in the United States, it was customary to start the day by reading the morning
newspaper or turning on the news to learn about current events or what happened in our
communities over the last few days. This included reports of neighborhood activities, sales ads,
and reports on crimes that recently occurred. Today, however, the information we receive about
current events comes from the internet and social media. Sometimes the data comes to people so
rapidly that the source is live streaming the activity. There have been reports of rising violent
crime rates, increased substance abuse, and poverty rates. Law enforcement agencies are
constantly posting recruitment ads and hiring signs due to the ever-changing policing
environment. This has played a role in law enforcement’s ability to investigate victim-related
crimes thoroughly. These are all things that threaten the power of the criminal justice system to
withstand.
Even in the changing environment, the criminal justice system and law enforcement
agencies within the system have seen the evolution of new technology. Liou (2019) states that
police organizations have used various technologies to analyze data, record crimes, and conduct
investigations, all to keep the public safe and protect the citizens they serve. In years past, law
enforcement officers would have to check in at call boxes during their shifts to talk to dispatchers
and receive their calls to respond to incidents. This later moved to handheld radio systems and
in-car radio communication systems that allowed dispatchers to send officers to calls more
rapidly, providing better safety for officers. Now, we see computer-aided dispatch systems being
used on laptops and tablets that are integrated into the law enforcement response. In recent
years, the development of technology in systems such as information technologies, video
surveillance, and identification offer tools to help police to achieve their more comprehensive
and increasingly multifaceted tasks. Even more, change has come in how officers can conduct
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their investigations. Technology has improved in this regard with body-worn cameras, drones,
facial recognition systems, license plate readers, and much more.
All the while, law enforcement’s ability to respond to victim-related crime has not seen
much change. Due to the factors associated with the need for comprehensive training,
knowledge, and trauma-informed response to these crimes, we have seen an increase in minors’
sexual exploitation and abuse. We will examine the issues associated with the criminal justice
response to victim crimes, specifically related to sexual assault, domestic violence, child
exploitation, and human trafficking, the significance of the problem, and policy solutions to
improve the response to these issues. This document will refer to these victim crimes as special
victim crimes.
Issue
Police officers are called upon for many reasons, and their role within the communities
they serve has changed over the years. Sometimes, we call the police for arguments between
neighbors or family and childcare disputes. In other instances, we call them to protect us from
society's most violent and evil criminals. Often, police officers who respond to help victims of
crime are the first to interact with them. It is said that first impressions matter and that those first
interactions victims have with responding officers could set the tone for the entire investigative
process. It was noted that the “police have a duty to help victims feel safe, assess their
immediate needs, and connect victims with service providers and health-care professionals who
are in the best position to provide assistance” (Farrell et al., 2019, p. 649). The issue is that the
law enforcement response to crime victims associated with special victim crimes is not
improving. Despite efforts brought about by the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime in
1982 and the Office of Victims of Crime (OVC) (Farrell et al., 2019). At the time, the
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President’s Task Force said that victims of crime are not always afforded justice through the
robust American criminal justice system (IACP, 2013). While there has been some progress, this
statement remains true.
The issue remains because it will continue to have long-lasting effects on law
enforcement officers’ mistrust and ability to investigate victim crimes properly. Farrell et al.
(2019) suggest that in 2016 only 51% of victims of serious violent crimes reported the incidents
to the police. When asked who should be concerned about this issue, the answer is everyone.
The effects of mounting distrust in the criminal justice system and not reporting crime or
victimization to the police build the wrong culture. This teaches our children that these types of
incidents do not matter and that calling the police to seek justice for victims is the wrong thing to
do, and that should be a concern for any department head, road patrol officer, and all those in
between. Breen et al. (2021) state that the impact of sexual assault is a widespread societal
concern and that the World Health Organization estimated that one in three women has
experienced sexual or physical violence. They suggest that these assaults put victims at greater
risk for sexually transmitted diseases, other long-term health-related issues, and psychological
conditions (Breen et al., 2021).
Victim Perspectives
Law enforcement officers today are quick to want to solve the crime before them without
truly investigating what has occurred. Ballucci et al. (2021) suggest that the criminal justice
system’s impact on survivors of sex crimes is often overlooked. Arguably, the criminal justice
system is not equipped to provide proper services to special victims, nor are there enough
systems to support them through the criminal justice process. Victims of these crimes begin to
believe they are to blame (victim blaming). They further feel that law enforcement officers
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begin to focus heavily on police objectives associated with obtaining a conviction for the crimes
committed without thinking of the effects it may have on the victim, causing revictimization
(Ballucci et al., 2021). It is suggested that the better and more equipped law enforcement is to
understand justice, the better the impact it has on victims and the more likely they will
participate in the investigative process (Ballucci et al., 2021).
Procedural Justice
Another area that causes the issue to be reinforced is procedural justice. Ballucci et al.
(2021) describe this as the idea that how victims perceive the criminal justice system is more
associated with the fairness of the process and how they were treated during the process than the
perceived fairness of the outcome of their cases. Sex crime victims are more engaged in the
process when they are allowed to be involved in their cases. When this occurs, they feel
empowered, reducing their chances of revictimization and psychological consequences (Ballucci
et al., 2019).
Officer Discretion
Further exacerbating the issue is officers’ discretion when making decisions in special
victim crime investigations. Ballucci et al. (2021) say that as first responders, police officers are
put into positions that force them to make decisions regarding making charges, investigating, and
pursuing cases. It is also within an officer’s discretion to determine the quality of evidence,
which arguably results in inconsistent practices, wrongfully written or coded reports, and
misinterpreted conviction rates (Ballucci et al., 2021). In some instances, a mandatory arrest is
required in domestic violence cases. This depends on the state in which the crime occurred in. If
a mandatory arrest must be made, this may sometimes hinder the decision-making process made
by the investigating officers. Sometimes the risk of violence towards victims in these cases is
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exacerbated once the offender is released from custody and can result in revictimization. This
lessens the likelihood of victims participating in the criminal justice process or, worse, not
reporting further assaults if they were to occur again (Farrell et al., 2019). George et al. (2022)
state that, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, police only arrest 14% of the reported
suspects in sex crime cases. They argue that police officers’ use of discretion in the decision-
making process to unfound reports, arrest suspects, or refer cases to prosecutors for charging
contributes to more case attrition than prosecutors do (George et al., 2022).
Other Factors
Several other factors influence officer discretion and decision-making regarding special
victim investigations. First are case-specific elements that investigators hope for in their cases,
like physical evidence, offense seriousness, and victim cooperation (George et al., 2022). It is
also said that decisions are influenced by ‘anticipated downstream decisions’ made by
prosecutors and the resources available. George et al. (2022) discuss several studies that show a
high percentage of officers reported that prosecutor case decisions influenced their will to
proceed with working cases. At the same time, other studies showed that physical evidence and
witness statements mattered more to officers than a victim’s credibility or statements (George et
al., 2022).
Problem
We have identified the primary issue as the law enforcement response to crime victims
associated with special victim crimes is not improving despite efforts put in place by
policymakers and other stakeholders. This is due to several fundamental problems: 1) officer
hiring and retention; 2) officer bias and misperceptions with special victim-related crimes. These
are problems that contribute to the overall issue and further take away from being able to serve
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individuals who become victims of certain victim-related crimes properly. If we continue facing
officer retention issues, not providing adequate training on how these investigations should be
handled, and continue to misunderstand the prevalence of these crimes, the impact on society
will be detrimental. In a study conducted by George et al. (2022), officers suggested that if only
they had more resources, they would have more thorough investigations with more arrests being
made. It was further reported that special victim-related cases were not a priority in some
departments and that finding qualified and interested investigators to work on such cases was
even more challenging (George et al., 2022).
Officer Hiring and Retention
In 2010, when entering the workforce from high school or college, there was still a line at
application processing and testing sites for law enforcement organizations across the country. In
some instances, this still exists. However, issues with recruiting, hiring, and retaining police
officers are some of the most challenging problems facing law enforcement organizations in the
United States today. Copeland et al. (2022) law enforcement agencies have had a continuous
‘workforce crisis’ due to their inability to recruit, declining retention rates, and a growing
increase in the amount of personnel retiring. In the past decade, law enforcement agencies have
faced increased public scrutiny due to the public display of officers’ use of force. This has
brought about a perceived or actual loss of trust from the public, increased physical threat to the
safety of officers, perceived or real loss of support from governing bodies over police
organizations (mayors, city or county managers, councils), aggressive actions taken by
prosecutors and intensive scrutiny via mainstream and social media (Copeland et al., 2022).
Officer Bias and Misperceptions
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In most instances, when we see discussion on law enforcement bias, the conversation
begins with implicit or racial bias. However, while those topics are important, and do overlap
with this topic, in this context, the bias we are focused on has to do with the bias associated with
special victims and the law enforcement response to their investigations. Bias is a personal and
sometimes unreasoned judgment or prejudice (Merriam-Webster, 2022). In their abstract,
Franklin et al. (2020) discuss law enforcement perceptions of a victim and how these can directly
impact secondary victimization, case processing, and public safety. Victims of special victim-
related crimes have often suffered from traumatic experiences. They may present to police with
flat affect, emotional numbness, or an inability to recall specific events or the timing of those
events (Franklin et al., 2020). This causes officers to have misperceptions about the reliability
and credibility of victims.
Confirmation Bias
In many instances, officer bias can be likened to what is commonly referred to as
confirmation bias. Confirmation bias is the “phenomenon that leads people to merely look for
evidence that confirms prior beliefs about a case and ignores potentially conflicting or alternative
evidence” (Sumampouw et al., 2022, p. 371). In instances where this type of bias is present,
officers may develop preconceived notions that a victim is lying or may no longer be open to
alternative information where a victim is telling the truth (Sumampouw et al., 2022). This bias
and misperception exist with all types of special victim crimes. Venema (2018) reported that
sexual assault remains underreported, with only 16% - 39% of cases reported to law
enforcement. It is also asserted that officers’ perceptions of sexual assault victims, including
their endorsement of rape myths, contribute to negative victim experiences with police and lack
of case progress through the criminal justice system (Venema, 2018).
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Rape Myths
To understand how rape myths have negative consequences and further exacerbate the
issue, we must know what they are. Lonsway and Fitzgerald (1994; as cited in Venema, 2018)
define rape myths as “attitudes and beliefs that are generally false but are widely and persistently
held, and that serve to deny and justify male sexual aggression against women” (p. 178).
Venema (2018) goes on to provide the following examples of rape myths: 1) women ask to be
raped; 2) rape involves a weapon and apparent physical injury; 3) rape is a result of
uncontrollable passion; 4) women lie about being raped; and 5) only certain kinds of women are
raped. Garza and Franklin (2021) argue that this type of bias or misperception leads personnel to
respond to special victim crimes with disbelief and insensitivity, causing a victim’s credibility to
be questioned. When this occurs, and survivors of these crimes are met with a guarded response
from law enforcement, and it is evident that the response is one with stigma and doubt present,
this may cause victims to refuse participation in the investigative process because of the
revictimization or trauma that may occur (Garza and Franklin, 2021). Franklin et al. (2020) also
argue that when victims “feel invalidated, are met with disbelief, or interpret justice professionals
as blaming, trauma symptoms are exacerbated (p. 1057).
Understanding Human Trafficking
The Office of Refugee Resettlement within the United States Department of Health and
Human Services (2012, as cited in Edwards et al., 2022) states that human trafficking is the
fastest-growing criminal industry, generating over $9.5 billion yearly in the United States. The
Trafficking Victims Protection Act (22 USC § 7102, as cited in Fukushima et al., 2020) defines
human trafficking as occurring when a person is induced by force, fraud, or coercion for
subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery. This can include acts of
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sex or labor exploitation, and often persons under the age of 18 are victims of this crime.
Although there is continued effort to acknowledge and understand the elements associated with
human trafficking, misperceptions and bias still exist within the law enforcement community,
causing a failed response to special victims.
Fukushima et al. (2020) argue that victims “continue to face a culture where stigmatizing
behaviors and responses lead them to face devaluation, rejection from society, and unsympathetic
responses from law enforcement and service providers when they are seeking support” (p. 126).
Farrell et al. (2019) suggest that the law enforcement response to human trafficking continues to
fail because many agencies and the officers that serve within them are unaware that human
trafficking is a crime they can enforce or, worse, do not believe that it exists or is a problem in
their communities. Many overlook human trafficking victims because of a lack of training or
experience with the acts that make up the crime of human trafficking, which leads to
misidentifying cases as other types of crimes (Srikantiah, 2007, as cited in Farrell et al., 2019).
Further research suggests that human trafficking victims do not report their crimes because of the
impacts of trauma, previous negative experiences with law enforcement, or the belief that
misperceptions or biases exist among law enforcement and that they will not understand their
experiences (Farrell et al., 2019).
Jurek and King (2020) have identified human trafficking as a social issue causing crime
and disorder across the United States. They assert that two features exist that make this special
victim crime unique. First, is that it is one of the only social issues that has quickly become
predominantly a criminal justice problem and less of a human or labor rights problem. Secondly,
Jurek and King (2020) state that human trafficking has become politically gendered. While they
acknowledge that victims of trafficking may be of any gender, race, or ethnicity, the advocacy
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work across the globe primarily focuses on the exploitation of women and minor children who
are being sexually exploited.
Sex Trafficking. The United States Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA, 2000, as
cited in Franchino-Olsen et al., 2022) defines sex trafficking as:
The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the
purpose of a commercial sex act…induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the
person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age. (p. 182)
Minor Sex Trafficking. Human trafficking of a person under 18 does not require
evidence of force, fraud, or coercion and includes any involvement of minors who are engaged in
commercial sex acts (Franchino-Olsen et al., 2022). In the United States, minor sex trafficking is
considered a form of child abuse and involves a multidisciplinary response to the investigative
process. The crimes associated with minor sex trafficking often intersect with the commercial
sexual exploitation of children (CSEC). Hampton and Lieggi (2020) state that commercial
sexual exploitation of children is a form of human trafficking and involves the sexual abuse of a
child or minor victim for financial gain, and commonly includes child pornography (widely
referred to as child sexual abuse material), physical abuse, or commercial sex work. They go on
to suggest that children who are the most at risk of being exploited are homeless, runaways,
transgender, gang-involved, abandoned, forced from home, residing close to southern or northern
border cities, or in the United States as unaccompanied minors (Hampton and Lieggi, 2020).
Labor Trafficking. The United States Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA, 2000,
as cited in Farrell et al., 2019) defines labor trafficking as:
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The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or
services through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purposes of subjection to
involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery. (p. 36)
Farrell et al. (2019) go on to say that labor trafficking can involve undocumented workers who
migrate in search of jobs and in up involuntarily working to pay off smuggling debts, to domestic
workers laboring under a lawful visa that their employers exploit through threats of deportation
or loss of visa to keep the worker in a state of involuntary servitude. In most instances, these
cases go under-identified by law enforcement, or victims do not self-identify or report their
victimization to the police due to a lack of awareness or fear of law enforcement involvement
(Farrell et al., 2019).
Significance of the Problem
The issue discussed is that the law enforcement response to crime victims associated with
special victim crimes is not improving due to officer hiring and retention and officer bias and
misperceptions of special victim-related crimes. Both problems cause long-term effects on the
law enforcement response to special victim crimes. The answer would be a resounding yes when
asked how prevalent these problems are or if they are significant. For law enforcement hiring
and retention, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has reported that the number of local police
officers increased by 8% between 1997 and 2016, while the population increased by 21% in the
same period across the United States (Hyland and Davis, 2016, as cited in Copeland et al., 2022).
They further shared that in 2018 a survey was conducted that indicated 27% of municipalities
believed those police officer vacancies were among the hardest to fill, which was a massive
increase from only 5% in 2009 (Copeland et al., 2022). In recent years, the effects of officer use
of force incidents under public scrutiny have only exacerbated the prevalence of a reduction in
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force among law enforcement agencies nationwide. Copeland et al. (2022) referred to this as the
Ferguson effect. They argued that the effect has crippled police retention and recruitment efforts
by challenging police legitimacy and making the job less desirable to the public. This is
significant because these effects have been seen across the country, brought about by publicly
disseminated information through social media sources.
Officer bias and misperceptions regarding special victim crimes are also significant
problems. Rape myths, confirmation bias, and a misunderstanding of exploitation and human
trafficking-related crimes lead to poor decision-making by law enforcement officers. These
problems further distrust in law enforcement and build barriers between law enforcement and the
communities they serve. It was found that 47% of law enforcement officers surveyed across
seven departments reported that the anticipated actions of prosecutors influenced their decisions
not to pursue special victim investigations (Page, 2008, as cited in George et al., 2022). George
et al. (2022) examined a previous study through research conducted by Spohn and Tellis (2014),
where 52 Los Angeles Police Department Detectives participated. These detectives had
experience in law enforcement ranging from 10 to 33 years and two months to 25 years working
special victim-related investigations. In the findings, over 60% of all comments on how they
conduct their investigations and what influences their case outcomes were evidence, victim
cooperation, rape myths, and downstream decisions made by prosecutors concerning the cases
(George et al., 2022).
The prevalence of human trafficking-related special victim crimes in the United States is
at an all-time high. While departments are already short-staffed and officers face misperceptions
when working on these investigations, the criminal industry continues to build. The United
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States Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Report stated that 98% of sex trafficking
cases in the United States involved women and children. The report said that one in eleven
youth receives an unwanted online sexual solicitation and that children first fall victim to online
sexual exploitation between the ages of 12 and 14 (Edwards et al., 2022).
Solution
While it may seem that some of the problems that contribute to the issue are unavoidable,
there are several solutions to address these concerns. It is said that employees do not leave bad
organizations; they leave bad bosses. Sometimes, the reason personnel leave for another job is
out of our control. But to affect the constant recruiting and retention needs, law enforcement
organizations must employ robust officer retention programs to keep those they have on their
teams. Taylor et al. (2022) state that law enforcement officers are critical to protecting our
communities. To increase job satisfaction, morale, and productivity and to support mental health,
agencies should implement employee wellness programming. Secondly, to address the problems
associated with officer misperceptions and bias regarding special victim-related crimes, there are
several solutions: 1) improve police interactions with victims; and 2) improve the structural
response to special victim-related crimes among law enforcement agencies by implementing a
victim-centered and trauma-informed approach. Agency executives have three choices: do
nothing, adopt an incremental approach to improve, or take on a full implementation model.
Do Nothing
By doing nothing, we are focused on past failures and assume there are no ways to
improve. Taking this approach would continue to build upon the issues we face in law
enforcement today and compound the problems identified. The impact it may have on the
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department, the department’s budget, and external stakeholders should be discussed when
making this decision. Arguably, losing personnel at any stage of the process, no matter how long
they’ve been employed, takes a toll on the department. Personnel shortages force other
department employees to work excessively long hours, increase the lack of drive and motivation
for employees to want to come to work, and more. Not doing anything to shift the culture with
how officers respond to special victims impacts department stakeholders by not giving them the
services they deserve or need and increasing the stigma between victims and law enforcement.
Impact on Department
The impact on a department will largely be a negative one. Those departments that chose
to do nothing to address the officer recruitment and retention needs will face continued
challenges internally with employee morale and wellness needs and externally with a lack of
trust from the public. Wolter et al. (2018) suggested that research on occupational health has
shown that job characteristics affect employees’ well-being. They go on to say that “job
demands like work overload, time pressure, and emotional demands are associated with reduced
well-being, job resources, procedural fairness, and trust in management have a positive effect on
well-being” (Schaufeli and Taris, 2014, as cited in Wolter et al., 2018). Doing nothing to improve
the law enforcement response to special victims also widens the gap between law enforcement
and the public. If agencies lose public trust because of previous bad relationships, this could be
detrimental.
Impact on Budget
On the one hand, it is easy to assume that doing nothing will not impact a department’s
budget. Arguably this is not the case. Suppose departments are suffering from increased
retention issues and continue to perform poorly in criminal investigations concerning special
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victim crimes. In that case, this could lead to more money being spent on hiring new employees,
paying overtime to existing employees, and increasing health care costs, with existing employees
suffering from increased job-related stress and anxiety. Liability costs are also associated with
not properly responding to special victim crimes.
Impact on Stakeholders
Doing nothing results in adverse outcomes for external stakeholders who depend on a law
enforcement response to everyday issues. Suppose departments cannot retain current employees
or implement new hire recruiting plans to put more people in patrol cars. In that case, this results
in extended response times for calls for service and, much worse, failed responses to special
victim-related crimes.
Incremental Approach
The recommended incremental approach would be to focus on officer retention and work
to increase the knowledge and training of department personnel for special victim-related crimes.
This can be accomplished by implementing an employee wellness program and applying a
trauma-informed and victim-centered approach to criminal investigations. Scott et al. (2019)
described a trauma-informed approach as one that involves processes for recognizing the signs of
trauma and building service systems to handle the unique needs of trauma survivors. Wolter et
al. (2018) argue that police officers are at high risk for reduced well-being in terms of mental
health and burnout, which could result in poor physical health.
Impact on Department
Implementing an officer wellness program and an incremental plan to train and apply a
new approach for investigating special victim crimes will improve employee well-being and
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morale and increase the likelihood of enhanced trust in law enforcement. This will also increase
job satisfaction and more community engagement, increasing the possibility of victim reporting.
Impact on Budget
The impact on the departmental budget would be minimal by implementing an
incremental approach. The goal of this approach should be to promote the well-being of agency
employees by reducing job demand and emotional exhaustion (Wolter et al., 2018). This can be
done through health promotion programs to improve employee health, particularly with blood
pressure, diet, sleep, and stress-related concerns (Taylor et al., 2022).
Impact on Stakeholders
The incremental approach would impact stakeholders in several ways. First, improving
employee well-being and retention leads to more officers in patrol cars and better job
satisfaction. This leads to improved response times and better public interaction with officers
serving in their communities.
Full Implementation
The recommended full implementation approach would be to develop and implement the
following programs to increase employee retention and recruitment and to improve the law
enforcement response to special victim crimes. First, the agency should implement an officer
retention and care package that would include incremental pay increases based on years of
service to the organization and a physical fitness program that allows for added paid time off for
those that participate in the program to increase overall health and wellness. Secondly, the
agency should designate or implement a special victim response team to allow specialized law
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enforcement officers to be trained to handle special victim-related cases and implement special
victim crime policies to ensure guidelines are in place to increase awareness and understanding.
Impact on Department
By accepting and completing the full implementation, departments will begin to see
significant changes in the culture within the department with an improved mindset of personnel
on the team. This will allow for increased retention and recruitment efforts. Jurek and King
(2020) state that “the greater the problem an agency leader perceived human trafficking to be in
their community, the more likely the agency was to have identified a case of human trafficking”
(p. 29). Implementing a special victim response team will lead to better responses to special
victim-related crimes and improve victim and community interaction and perceptions of the
department.
Impact on Budget
The full implementation of these recommendations would not result in alarming budgetary
increases or concerns. While there would be associated costs with the incremental pay increase
program for employee retention, this would out way the cost associated with losing years of
experience with retained personnel and result in less cost to hire and recruit new staff.
Impact on Stakeholders
Farrell et al. (2019) stated that “police also play an important role in the victim
restoration process by formally recognizing and validating the victims’ experiences, which is a
critical step in recovery” (p. 668). By developing mission or crime-specific response teams to
respond to investigate special victim-related crimes, departments would see a significant change
in the results of investigations due to stakeholder engagement with the investigative process.
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Christian Worldview
A Christian worldview only strengthens potential solutions addressing the issue of a
stagnant law enforcement response to the most vulnerable in our society who become victims in
special victim crime cases. The role of law enforcement executives and the officers they serve is
multifaceted. Whether we are agency heads or police officers on the ground answering calls
from the community, our job is to take care of our teams and the communities they serve. The
Bible says:
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another
in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your
spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in
prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. (New
International Bible, 1978/2011, Romans 12:9-13)
This verse stands out when thinking about our role as criminal justice professionals serving the
capacity to affect the well-being of our officers or the outcome of our investigations involving
special victims. Our role is to take on the burdens of those we serve.
Conclusion
This paper aimed to address the issues associated with the criminal justice response to
victim crimes, including sexual assault, domestic violence, and human trafficking, the
significance of the problem, and policy solutions to improve the response. It is evident in the
findings that there is a better way to recruit, hire, and retain law enforcement personnel, which
will have a better impact on law enforcement investigations involving special victim crimes.
Law enforcement agencies across the nation are facing personnel shortages and the challenges
associated with hiring and retaining quality officers. These problems have limited police
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agencies’ ability to adequately train and equip personnel to respond to and investigate special
victim crimes, negatively impacting case decision-making and outcomes. Energy should be
spent on hiring, retention, and specialized training by implementing policy solutions focusing on
officer wellness and victim-centered trauma-informed investigative techniques. By employing
these solutions to the issues law enforcement organizations face today, we will begin to see a
shift in law enforcement retention and response to special victims. This will, in turn, have a
trickle-down effect on case outcomes by providing proper victim services through procedural
justice and by holding offenders accountable through the criminal justice process.
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