UPDATE!
PART 2 | CRIME WRITER TURNED VICTIM AND SURVIVOR: When the system fails, you rewrite the rules
Thank you so much for your continued support - we are making a difference!
This is no longer about just me. This is about the systemic problems within the justice system in Dallas, TX. This is about their complete disregard for their own processes and disdain in regard to justice for women.
The primary role of law enforcement is to be evidence collectors. But what happens when they do not follow their own processes and refuse to look at available evidence? Well in Dallas, Texas: Nothing. I’m not rich enough, famous enough, or dead enough for the Dallas PD and DA to care enough to investigate.
In my prior article, Crime Writer Turned Victim and Survivor, I brought my case to the public to rally the Dallas District Attorney’s office to investigate the violent crime committed against me after the Dallas Police Department prematurely closed the case without following their basic standards for investigating a sexual assault.
After waiting months, the DA’s office contacted me to inform me that they too decided to not adhere to the basic standards of investigating a sexual assault. There still has been no proper evidence preservation and collection; and they did not interview witnesses nor the suspect. This is evidence that the NYPD SVU thought important enough that they spent the time and resources for the SVU detective to fly to Dallas and hand deliver it to the Dallas PD.
To this date, what have both the Dallas Police Department and the District Attorney’s Office failed to do?
1) Interview the nine witnesses that came forward with info about my case and the suspect
2) Obtain a search warrant for the video surveillance footage at the hotel
3) Interview other witnesses who were at the conference
4) Allow the Grand Jury to decide whether the case has enough evidence to move forward
5) Fully process all evidence included with the SANE kit by the NYPD SVU
6) Contact the suspect about new evidence that has been discovered
What do these two agencies have in common?
1) They don’t have processes in place to ensure their biases don’t impact the investigation
2) They decide the outcome of the case before doing a thorough investigation
3) They scrutinize the victim more than the suspect
Why would they work so hard to not do their jobs? Perhaps my case is just the tip of the iceberg. Perhaps they are in fact acutely aware of a widespread problem, systemic deficiencies, and dereliction of duty, but don’t want it discovered. Perhaps it is just easier to deny victims the possibility of justice than to risk exposure.
This is seemingly a systemic issue because this is the same problem reflected in the recent rapes in the Dallas area that also was not fully investigated and though authorities were warned repeatedly of the danger of the predator, the suspect faced no consequences and went on to murder.
I am now over 50, I’ve been happily married for almost thirty years, I have many credible witnesses, I did the work to come forward, there is ample evidence to discover, yet all I’ve faced is the repeated disdain and dismissal of the police and the DA’s office. Ultimately, everything it cost me to come forward and all the evidence didn’t matter.
Here’s your chance to do something. It IS possible to make a difference, to lower the crime rate and to save lives. But we have to let the DPD and the District Attorney’s office know we care, we want change, and we are watching.
Nothing changes unless we fight for it.
It IS possible to overcome these problems when people work together. Thank you for your help.
CALL TO ACTION:
I am asking members of the community to join me in urging the Dallas County to take sexual assault cases more seriously and ensure victims who come forward are afforded their rights and treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. I’ve provided suggestions for who to contact and templates below. Please contact the following to let them know that you expect them to make changes:
Dallas District Attorney Community Relations Phone: (214) 653–3600
Amy.Derrick@dallascounty.org
DallasDAPress@dallascounty.org
Dallas County Commissioner’s Court — Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins
Phone: (214) 653–7949
E-mail: dcjudge@dallascounty.org
Dallas County Commissioner — Dr. Elba Garcia
Chair of Criminal Justice Advisory Board
Elba.GarciaDDS@dallascounty.org
Click HERE to auto-fill the above email addresses
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A sample of what could be included in your emails and phone calls:
Dear Dallas Officials,
I am writing to you today to express my deep concern about the way that sexual assault cases are being handled in our community. The way cases are currently being handled sends the message to our community that victims of sexual assault don’t matter and that offenders will not be held accountable.
I believe that the DA’s office has a responsibility to do everything in its power to hold perpetrators accountable and to support victims.
I am particularly troubled by the following:
The lack of systems and processes in place to ensure each sexual assault case is thoroughly investigated.
The lack of awareness and commitment to victim’s constitutional rights-including the right to be treated with dignity and respect for privacy.
The low number of sexual assault cases that are actually prosecuted.
The low conviction rates for sexual assault cases that do go to trial.
The lack of resources available to sexual assault survivors.
I believe that these problems are due to a lack of commitment from the District Attorney’s Office to take sexual assault cases seriously. I urge you to take immediate action to address these issues and to send a clear message that sexual assault will not be tolerated in our community.