Advocates, Police Share Resources For Victims Of Sexual Assault

Tulsa Police and advocates want victims to know what they can do if they're sexually assaulted.

“You have options, and we are going to do everything we can to support you in the best way for you. Sometimes that’s gonna be making a report and moving forward. Sometimes that’s gonna be making a report and inactivating the case. Sometimes that’s gonna be seeing a forensic nurse and preserving evidence in a non-report setting. Sometimes that’s gonna be meeting with another community partner, DVIS, and speaking with advocates and your counselor and making sure that trauma is worked through,” said Lt. Darin Ehrenrich, TPD Special Victims Unit.

Thousands of victims choose not to report the crime committed against them for fear of retaliation.

“We live in a society that says good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people. And when something bad happens to someone good, we try to make sense of it and we can’t,” said Lori Gonzalez, DVIS VP of Advocacy Services.

For most victims deciding to report it or not, they ask how this will affect their personal life, family and friends, future relationships, and career opportunities, and whether they'll be blamed for what happened to them. But advocates said it's not their fault.

Sexual assault survivors weren't given the choice of being violated, but they do have a choice in what happens next.

"We do as much of the exam as we can and as soon as that patient says ‘no, I’m uncomfortable’ we don’t do that part of the exam. The patient is in control, and we want them to feel that they have that power to tell us what kind of care that they would like," said Kasey Magness, TPD Forensic Nurse Administrator.

Victims can call or text the DVIS crisis line and connect with a forensic nurse for an exam at Hillcrest to preserve evidence without involving police. For non-report exams, the sexual assault kit will be safely stored; Oklahoma law mandates that all sexual assault kits will be stored for 50 years.

The window for getting a physical exam is within 72 hours for kids and 120 hours for adults. After that, you can still file a police report and get physical and emotional help.

"You’re not alone. When you come into our exam room to see the forensic nurse, we are here to support you the whole way. You don’t have to report to the police, or you can report to the police. We have some patients get there that don’t want to report and then by the time we’ve talked to them, they’ve decided that reporting is the best option. We just meet our patients where they’re at and what’s best for them and their situation. We're not just here to collect evidence. We want to make sure that you're okay. We’re nurses first and foremost," said Magness.

Lt. Darin Ehrenrich has been a police officer for 15 years, has been in this supervisor role for about four years now and has worked a number of different cases. He said these cases are just different.

"[W]hat we know about sexual offenders is that statistics overwhelmingly show that if they’ve sexually assaulted someone, it’s almost certain that they’ve sexually assaulted someone else. And so I think reporting is so important for investigations and prosecution simply for creating that paper trail to show this is an ongoing pattern and just showing that pattern helps us significantly as investigators. And it helps prosecutors prosecute these cases to the fullest extent of the law," said Lt. Ehrenrich.

“When they perpetrate and they don’t get in trouble for it, it empowers them to go on and do other things,” said Gonzalez.

You can file a police report online, over the phone or in person and choose to inactivate the case and reopen it if and when you're ready.

"The statute of limitations is 12 years for adult victims. For juvenile victims that's up to the 45th birthday of that victim," said Lt. Ehrenrich.

TPD's Special Victims Unit investigates sexually motivated crimes against victims 14 years and older and receives about 1,000 reports a year. However, only about a quarter of sexual assaults are ever reported to law enforcement.

SVU said in 2022 it received 990 reports of crimes, which includes 417 rapes, 89 reports of Lewd Molestation of a Minor, and 26 attempted rapes.

Through March 31 of this year, SVU said it’s received 247 reports of sexually motivated crimes, which includes 98 rapes, 27 reports of Lewd Molestation of a Minor, and 4 attempted rapes.

"The person who has been victimized can’t be responsible for stopping this person. That’s other people’s responsibility. That’s why we go to the police. It’s not your fault,” said Gonzalez.

Forensic nurses help treat injuries and provide medications to prevent infections.

Advocates said what victims were wearing wasn't consent and neither was a drunk 'yes.'

DVIS offers counseling to people of all ages who have either witnessed or survived domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking or human trafficking.

DVIS also has advocacy services; an advocate goes to the hospital with every person that’s getting a free sexual assault exam (SANE exam) to help them through that process. They also offer shelter, temporary housing, and legal support for victims.

“There’s no time limit on how people respond to trauma. I’ve seen people that have had a SANE exam and the next day they go back to work, and it doesn’t hit them until years later,” said Gonzalez.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and this year’s theme is “Drawing Connections: Prevention Demands Equity.”

RESOURCES:

Special Victims Unit: 918-596-9168 // specialvictimsunit@cityoftulsa.org

Family Safety Center: 918-742-7480

Domestic Violence Intervention Services (DVIS): 24/7 Crisis Line with trained sexual assault advocates – 918-743-5763 // https://dvis.org/about-us-domestic-violence-intervention-services/contact-us/

Click here for information about Sexual Assault Awareness month.