A third of all "Rape" victims had been drinking
A third of all women who make rape allegations have been drinking, reveals a new police report published today.
The Scotland Yard dossier illustrates the difficulties of recording and prosecuting rape allegations with 13 per cent of victims who contact police 'unsure' if they have been raped or not.
The report looks at 677 allegations of rape reported in London in April and May this year. Of those, 511 were recorded as crimes with 166 recorded as 'not crime' or 'no crime.' This was because of factors such as insufficient evidence to classify the allegation as rape.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Brian Paddick said that while the report had positives points - such as the high number of reported cases - work still needs to be done to protect and support vulnerable victims.
Mr Paddick said: "We believe that there is need for a major rethink in some cases about how we investigate and prosecute these offences.
"We are determined to protect those vulnerable victims and we are looking to introduce solutions for those most difficult of cases.
"There are positive factors in that we are getting more people come forward who want us to help them clear up their own confusion over whether sexual intercourse or rape has taken place."
Mr Paddick said although it is difficult to charge and prosecute on alcohol-related allegations, the Met were looking at alternative means of pursuing cases, especially when the victim can't remember what has happened.
He said: "We need to look at ways, other than putting vulnerable victims in a situation where they have to appear in front of an adverserial prosecution or courtroom environment.
"We do get cases where someone can't remember what has happened to them, in cases like this we need to look at things like interviewing the alleged offender in such a way that they need to come up with a satisfactory explanation as to how consent was given. We get cases where sexual intercourse has taken place, but there is an issue over consent.
"We can also look at getting forensic evidence as soon as possible which can back up an allegation of rape."
Mr Paddick also drew attention to recent advertising campaigns from the Met Police and the Greater London Authority encouraging women not to get into illegal minicabs which he said had helped reduce attacks by illegal minicab drivers.
Raising awareness about the dangers of alcohol could help reduce related rape allegations.
Today's report was commissioned by the Metropolitan Police to thoroughly examine the way rape cases are investigated. The research also recommended that classifying a rape allegation as 'no crime' or 'not crime'
should be solely left to one designated body under Operation Sapphire, rather than each Police borough deciding for themselves