Chatham-Kent Police Chief Gary Conn is responding to concerns about the way local officers carry out sexual assault investigations.
He says the local force is conducting an internal review after a recent report from The Globe and Mail stated that nearly one in three sexual assault allegations in the municipality are being dismissed as "unfounded."
The report says Chatham-Kent's urban rate for unfounded allegations was 31% (187 out of 610) over a period from 2010 to 2014. That report states that an unfounded allegation "means that the investigator does not believe a criminal offence occurred or was attempted."
"We believe there may be a coding/classification issue," says Conn in a statement released to BlackburnNews.com. "However, we are currently conducting an audit into our process."
Conn says police will also be taking a closer look at the policies and procedures they have in place to see if anything can be improved or enhanced.
At the same time, he is sceptical of the report's findings.
"There are other variables that need to be taken into consideration, which may not have been reflected/provided to The Globe and Mail during their research," says Conn. "[Officers are] conducting a robust analysis into the definition and classifications surrounding the numbers and methodology provided by The Globe and Mail."
Conn says he can also confirm that Chatham-Kent police officers are kept up to date with all mandated training, which includes courses provided by the Ontario Police College for officers who are investigating sexual assaults.
Once the internal review is completed, police will be providing an update on its results.
Up the Hwy. 401, London's police chief took a somewhat different tone.
In that city, the unfounded rate was 30% (690 out of 2278) over the same period from 2010 to 2014.
While London Police Chief John Pare announced that his service will also be conducting a review of the way police investigate and clear sexual assault cases, he went a step further and offered an apology.
“It is with those victims in mind that I would like to apologize to any victims whose experiences left them feeling that they were not supported, or that may have eroded their trust in this police service in any way,” says Pare. “It was with those victims in mind that I implemented the full review of the London Police Service practices regarding sexual violence investigations."