More than 125 women have come forward in the last two years with claims of assault, rape and coercion by their police officer spouses and partners, Channel 4 reports.
A recent article from Channel 4 News reports that at least 129 women have approached the CWJ (Centre for Women’s Justice) with claims of domestic violence including beatings, rapes and coercion from their police office spouses.
The piece mentions a former police commander describing police perpetrated domestic abuse as an “epidemic” in the force.
Victims label the issue as a ‘boys club’ culture crawling with cover-ups, closing ranks and officer protection making victims feel like they were being silenced.
Channel 4 issued a statement from former Scotland Yard Deputy Assistant Commissioner David Gilbertson, stating “It is about men in authority exercising power over women and it is about failure of leadership on an epic scale in policing.”
“I know of cases where officers who were attached to Domestic Violence Units actively searched out vulnerable women for sexual gratification and in order to gain access to their children for sexual purposes.”
A request by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism discovered that between 2015 to 2018 there were almost 700 reports of domestic violence involving police staff.
We encourage all our readers to go and read the full report here.
We stand with victims of domestic abuse, here are a list of some local charities that you can support:
Pankhurst Trust – https://www.pankhursttrust.org/manchester-womens-aid/get-help
End The Fear – http://www.endthefear.co.uk/
Domestic Abuse Helpline – http://www.domesticabusehelpline.co.uk/
