@article{ref1,
title="Is police investigation of rape biased by characteristics of victims?",
journal="Forensic science international : synergy",
year="2020",
author="Vik, Bjarte Frode and Rasmussen, Kirsten and Schei, Berit and Hagemann, Cecilie Therese",
volume="2",
number="",
pages="98-106",
abstract="AIM: To explore differences in police investigations between cases of rape against women with and without vulnerability factors. <br><br>METHODS: Retrospective, descriptive study of cases of rape against women ≥16 years of age. Cases involving victims with and without vulnerability factors were compared regarding the quality of police investigation. <br><br>RESULTS: Vulnerability was present among 68% of the victims. Cases with vulnerable victims had an adjusted odds ratio for a low-quality police investigation of 2.1 (95% CI [1.0-4.4]) compared to cases where victims were non-vulnerable. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Our results do not prove that rape myths existed among police officers. Our findings show a trend indicating that vulnerable victims may have been less prioritized compared to non-vulnerable victims. More studies are needed regarding how the police respond to rape complaints and to what degree police investigations are influenced by different characteristics of victims.<br><br>© 2020 The Authors.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="2589-871X",
doi="10.1016/j.fsisyn.2020.02.003",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fsisyn.2020.02.003"
}