Historic child abuse

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Intro

Historic child abuse is an allegation of neglect, physical, sexual or emotional abuse made by or behalf of some who is now 18 or over, relating to an incident which took place before the victim was 18 (NSPCC, 2018).

In light if recent cases such as Jimmy Saville with Operation Yewtree (House of Lords, 2016), more and more victims of historic child abuse have begun to come forward to tell their story, however there are many issues surrounding historic child abuse and how it is policed.

Prosecution is not certain mostly due to the lack of evidence; the investigation process is often slow; communication is poor between the victims and the police. 

Further, there can be issues with inadequate communication between the multi-agency services, which can cause holes in the various cases.

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Para 1

Due to Operation Yewtree (HOL, 2016), an investigation that opened to look into the allegations agaisnt Jimmy Saville and others, many more victims have come forward with allegations of child abuse.

However, time makes it hard to investigate such cases thoroughly, and according to Newbury (2014) there are many factors that can lead to the likelihood of the perpretrtor not being prosecuted for their alleged crime.

In cases such as Lord Janner, who was investigated into by the Leicestershire Police, or Jimmy Saville, when there is sufficient for prosecution, the perpretrator had died before they could be put on trial, which means the victims and the investigation doees not get true closure.

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Para 2

There is a greater focus on current cases of child abuse simply because they are easier to investigate and do not face as much of a backlash.

HCA cases have a severe lack of evidence due to crime, in most cases the crime scene has been contaminated, offenders can escape and create alibis and dispose on any evience that relates them to the crime.

Due to this lack of evidence it creates the backlash that the victim is lying, which has led to the Met police to not automatically believe the victims of apparent child abuse (Evening Standard, 2018).

Further, Newbury (2014) states that witnesses and victims can be hard to locate in HCA cases, as well as a lack of reliability of recall as memories fade over time. 

This causes a delay in the investigation process, especially if the witness or perpetrator has died.

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Para 3

There are many issues in relation to the victim when it comes to HCA cases.

The biggest one is that they are not often believed.

However, the HOL (2016) reported that they are aware of this issue, however they think that the focus of the investigation should be on proving or disproving the allegation agaisnt the suspect, and not on the credibility of the victim.

This switches the focus from the victim to the perpretrator, in a sense taking away the voice of the victim.

This policy was introduced in June 2014 with "Operation Hydrant" (HOL, 2016) which oversaw and coordinated all "non-recent" child abuse investigations concerning persons of public importance as well as offences which took place in institutions.

Through this, there was 2,228 suspects who were being investigated, and senior investigation offiers were responsible for ensuring victims are supported throughout and that a thorough investigation is conducted.

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Para 4

There is often poor or inadequate social and criminal justice outcomes, sometimes as a result of the failed police investigations.

It was reported by the NSPCC (2012) that not many cases of historic child abuse cases lead to a criminal investigation of prosecution.

However, this has not stopped victims coming forward, and have been encouraged by those cases that have take that step further.

Further, various operations conducted by police forces have encouraged victims to come forward, such as Operation Midland (HOL,2016) which was an investigation into a ********** ring that operated during the 70s and 80s.

However, Colton et al (2002) reported that various cases had reported their allegations but to little effect, as many had taken no further action or had been dropped after the initial investigation.

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Para 5

There are many reasons why cases do not make it much further than an initial investigation.

Often the investigation process is too slow because the police cannot cope with the numbers of victims coming forward.

Further, it is ogten thought that the investigation becomes more difficult or delayed when the there is a longer delay between the alleged offence and the allegation being made.

A report from the House of Commons Affairs Committee (2016) stated that police investigations are a slow process due the engagement with survivors directly, and that this is a "significant weakness" (2016).

The HOL (2016) reported that one of the main factors which makes a case complicated is the time parameters between cases reported and the time the alleged offence took place, we cause many delays in police investigations.

Even though police and others are aware of the difficulties in investigating historic cases, there is not much they can do change this slow process.

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Para 6

However, one thing that does not help the investigation process is the lack of, or poor, communication between those investigating and the victims.

It has been reported that there is a 19-month gap between the first contact and a follow-up interview.

This is something that can be helped by the police.

However, as there is a greater focus on current cases rather than historic, the police's focus is often skewed.

As all their resources are focused to current cases, it leaves little left to historic cases, which could make victims feel inadequate and unimportant.

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Para 7

Further,  the techniques for reporting historic child abuse are inadequate or ineffective.

The process is defined by a fixed agenda and a specific.

It often works from a top-down point of investigation rather bottom-up, which means that investigators may miss out on little details that are crucial to the investigation. 

Investigations may be more successful if the police took their time to create reporting strategies for victims of historic abuse.

Therefore, it is important that the victims have a voice in their story, as there is a difference between reporting and giving a witness statement to writing and telling your story to the police.

A verbal statement often can undermiming, stressful and the victim can be revictimused, whereas with writing and storytelling, they are more likely to be listened to and believed.

The IICSA often publishes a victim's story, which is a much more participatory approach.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, there are many issues surrounding historic chulod abuse in relation to victimsand plice investigators.

The processes  for investigations are often alow due to lack of evidence provided for a case and the greater focus on current cases which means resources are scarce.

This therefore leads to poor social or criminal justice outcomes, and many cases gets dropped after the initial investigation, meaning many perpetrators are not prosecuted for their alleged assault.

Further, victims are not often believed when making a case, which contributes to the poor reporting system that mostly uses a top-down approach.

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