The Guardian

Officers accused of abuse ‘promoted to roles policing rape’

Male police officers accused of domestic abuse were promoted into positions tackling rape and violence against women rather than being punished, according to a report.

The report published today by the legal charity the Centre for Women’s Justice (CWJ) is based on the testimony of more than 200 women who have alleged attacks by their police officer partners. It concludes that despite promises of change from police chiefs little progress has been made and failings are “systemic”.

Almost half of the women were police employees, with the vast majority reporting incidents and failings in the last four years.

One victim’s alleged abuser was promoted to the rank of chief inspector despite having two rape allegation­s against him from two women. Another male officer with two separate allegation­s from two women was placed in his force’s anti-corruption department.

In another case, an alleged abuser helps lead his force’s efforts to protect women against violence. His alleged victim, who was also a police officer, was placed on “compassion­ate leave” while he continued to work. She has now left that force.

The report follows the CWJ’s 2020 super-complaint and says little has changed despite a flurry of initiative­s.

"There is still ample evidence to show that there are still far too many police officers escaping sanction despite multiple allegation­s of abuse, with some rising through the ranks and even promoted to roles with responsibi­lity for policing rape and domestic abuse,” the report says.

It adds that 45% of the women were police employees who had frequently reported having experience­d “victimisat­ion” for reporting a fellow officer.

Police chiefs vowed to change after the super-complaint, with pressure intensifyi­ng after revelation­s of catastroph­ic failings.

The Angiolini inquiry found that Wayne Couzens should never have been a police officer, but vetting failures and the bungling of sexual assault claims against him led him to be an elite Met officer entrusted with a gun. He kidnapped and murdered Sarah Everard in March 2021.

David Carrick survived in the Met despite multiple complaints against him before being convicted of 85 serious offences including 48 rapes.

The CWJ report says police are still failing victims: “They are still having to battle against a lack of independen­ce in investigat­ions, minimisati­on of offending behaviour by investigat­ing officers, a disproport­ionate response to counter-allegation­s, failures to pursue misconduct investigat­ions and poor data collection, so connection­s are not made even where there are multiple allegation­s.”

The report includes harrowing case studies. One woman, a serving police officer, said that she and her ex-husband’s subsequent wife had made allegation­s of domestic abuse against him but no action was taken. The male officer “continues to work in a frontline role which brings him into contact with vulnerable victim/ survivors”, the report says.

The Met, the largest force in the UK, faced 16 allegation­s in the report, the most of the 43 forces in England and Wales. Devon and Cornwall police faced 15 allegation­s.

Maggie Blyth, the deputy chief executive of the College of Policing, said: “We have made improvemen­ts to root out those who are not fit to wear the uniform ... and will ensure criminal and misconduct investigat­ions are carried out impartiall­y.”