Prosecutors Need to Take Action to Arrest Growth of Unethical ‘Victim-Centered’ Investigations

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Contact: Rebecca Stewart

Telephone: 513-479-3335

Prosecutors Need to Take Action to Arrest Growth of Unethical ‘Victim-Centered’ Investigations

“An impartial investigation performed by bias-free investigators is the substantive foundation” of a legal proceeding. — Judge Molly Reynolds Fitzgerald, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York (1)

WASHINGTON / February 21, 2022 – The continued growth of so-called “victim-centered” investigations represents a threat to the integrity of the criminal justice system. A bill introduced in the U.S. Senate last week would expand the use of such approaches. The Coalition to End Domestic Violence calls on prosecutors to speak out to stop the growth of these unethical investigative methods.

“Victim-centered” investigations are defined as methods that are “focused on the experience of the reported victim.” (2) By definition, “victim-centered” investigations serve to discount the testimony of the accused and bias the process. Victim-centered approaches are also known as “trauma-informed” or “Start By Believing.” (3)

In the criminal setting, victim-centered methods have been shown to bias police investigations through the concealment or fabrication of evidence and by other means. An analysis by the National Registry of Exonerations found that one-third of all wrongful convictions involve police investigative misconduct (4). In the civil context, seven appellate and 42 trial court decisions have documented that misconduct in campus investigations is widespread (5).

Trauma-informed methods in particular have been derided as “junk science.” (6) Use of such methods invites defense attorneys to impeach the testimony of police officers and attempt to disqualify the evidence they collect. To counter the trend, Arizona prosecutors approached Gov. Douglas Ducey to issue a statement advising against the use of Start By Believing methods because they create the “possibility of real or perceived confirmation bias.” (7)

The problem of victim-centered approaches may soon take a turn for the worse. Last week S. 3623, the Violence Against Women Act, was introduced in the U.S. Senate, which endorses “trauma-informed, victim-centered” methods (8). The bill represents an attempt to compromise impartial investigations, remove the presumption of innocence, and impair the integrity of the criminal justice process.

The bill also violates ABA Standard 3-4.1, “Investigative Function of the Prosecutor,” which advises prosecutors against the use of “unethical means to obtain evidence or information, or employ, instruct, or encourage others to do so.” (9)

Prosecutors are urged to act promptly to:

Call their Senators at (202) 224-3121 and urge them to remove Section 205 from the VAWA bill.
Ask your state chapter to issue a statement in opposition to the bill’s endorsement of “Trauma-Informed, Victim-Centered” methods.

The Senate is expected to vote on S. 3623 the week of February 28.

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