Heather was 15 years old when she was gang-raped.

For more than 30 years, she lived with the shame and anger of her trauma until she finally decided to report it to the Kelowna RCMP when she was 48 years old.

A year later, she was told by investigators that there wasnsa国际传媒檛 enough evidence and her case was closed, leaving her with more questions than answers and a sense of betrayal by those who are supposed to serve and protect.

Her experience with the police, like so many others in Kelowna, appears to be a common story many survivors of sexual assault have encountered.

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According to Statistics Canada, nearly 40 per cent of sexual assaults reported to Kelowna RCMP were deemed sa国际传媒渦nfoundedsa国际传媒� in 2018.

That number is more than double the 15 per cent average across the province and dwarfs the under five per cent averages in Vancouver and Victoria.

The alarming statistic represents 35 victims in Kelowna who claimed they were sexually assaulted but were never able to find justice.

Heather is one of those victims.

sa国际传媒淜elowna has a problem,sa国际传媒� she said. sa国际传媒淭here is no such thing as justice in this city for survivors and victims of sexual assault.sa国际传媒�

Heather, whose last name the Capital News has agreed to keep anonymous, was in Grade 10 at a party with some friends on spring break when she was allegedly gang-raped.

While shesa国际传媒檚 not sure if she was drugged, she said it was at that party in April 1986, where she was found unconscious and barricaded in a room with three of her classmates who sexually assaulted her.

sa国际传媒淭he last thing I remember was sitting on the couch drinking,sa国际传媒� Heather said. sa国际传媒淩umours are that I was drugged.sa国际传媒�

Heather said when she woke up the next day, she was sa国际传媒渟ore everywhere,sa国际传媒� and she sa国际传媒渏ust knewsa国际传媒� she had been assaulted.

Upon returning to school the following Monday, she had been deemed a sa国际传媒渟lutsa国际传媒� by her classmates.

It took Heathersa国际传媒檚 friends sa国际传媒� whom she now refers to using air quotes sa国际传媒� 32 years to tell her the names of two of the alleged culprits, allowing her to file a police report with the RCMP in September 2018.

She said her sa国际传媒渇riendssa国际传媒� wouldnsa国际传媒檛 divulge the name of the third culprit.

According to Heather, the RCMPsa国际传媒檚 initial investigation was limited to a single phone call, which was made to the wrong person with the same name as her assailant.

sa国际传媒淗e denied knowing me. They closed the case,sa国际传媒� said Heather, reliving the frustration she felt.

Feeling unheard, she decided to go up the chain of command.

sa国际传媒淚 spoke with someone who knows how to fight the RCMP,sa国际传媒� she said.

sa国际传媒淗e did some digging and he found out that they had just randomly phoned some guy with the same name.sa国际传媒�

After demanding a more thorough investigation, Heather said the RCMP made two additional phone calls to both of the men she accused, only for them to deny the allegations and the case to be closed in August 2019 sa国际传媒� less than a year after it was opened.

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Adding insult to injury, to this day, Heather said she is still seen as a slut by her classmates and feels betrayed by those she called her friends and classmates.

She even wrote a letter to them explaining the pain she felt when they looked the other way the day she needed them most.

sa国际传媒淚 did not have a good time. I did not deserve what those boys did to me, but more than that, I did not deserve what you all did to me after. I was raped and you all either covered it up or created a narrative where I was a slut and liked it,sa国际传媒� reads an excerpt from the letter she wrote to her classmates entitled Happy 30th Reunion.

Still raw from her embittered battle with law enforcement, Heather said there were times she couldsa国际传媒檝e screamed at the officers handling her case.

sa国际传媒淚 tried so fsa国际传媒攌ing hard to keep it together when I reported,sa国际传媒� she said.

At one point, during what she described as a very intimidating reporting process, Heather said she was asked whether or not she consented.

sa国际传媒淚 was 15 and I was unconscious. How would I have consented?sa国际传媒� She said.

sa国际传媒淚 walked into that office and Isa国际传媒檇 had 32 years to resolve my traumasa国际传媒�I cansa国际传媒檛 imagine being a fresh survivor and having to deal with them.sa国际传媒�

According to Heather, the RCMP is sa国际传媒渟teeped in rape culturesa国际传媒� and systemic change is needed in the way sexual assault cases are handled, adding she wasnsa国际传媒檛 surprised 40 per cent of sexual assault cases in 2018 were deemed sa国际传媒渦nfoundedsa国际传媒� by the RCMP in Kelowna.

sa国际传媒淲e need proper sexual assault investigators in this city and we need cops who understand what rape culture is and how theysa国际传媒檙e contributing to it,sa国际传媒� said Heather.

She slammed the police force for its poor training practices and described the current situation as an sa国际传媒渆pidemic.sa国际传媒�

sa国际传媒淲e need proper training; we need to hire better RCMP officers to begin withsa国际传媒�they need to be empathetic and they need to care about this epidemic because it is an epidemic.sa国际传媒�

Michelle Novakowski, executive director for the Central Okanagan Elizabeth Fry Society, agreed that more training needs to be given to police officers handling sensitive crimes, however, she said RCMP officers are still human and fallible.

sa国际传媒淲hile we do hold police to a higher standard, theysa国际传媒檙e still part of our culture and there are a lot of myths around sexual assault,sa国际传媒� she said.

She cited familiar tropes such as sa国际传媒渨omen ask for itsa国际传媒� or sa国际传媒渟he shouldnsa国际传媒檛 have been drinkingsa国际传媒� as unfortunate myths that are still perpetuated in society that place the blame on victims instead of putting the blame on the assailants.

sa国际传媒淭hose come out when somebody reports a sexual assault,sa国际传媒� she said.

Novakowski said the Elizabeth Fry Society has been working with the RCMP for a couple of years on developing a trauma-informed practice, but says more work still needs to be done.

The RCMP declined an interview request, but in a statement said the investigation into Heathersa国际传媒檚 case was concluded because the evidence did not meet the threshold to lay a charge.

That threshold, according to RCMP, is set out by the attorney general and must include the sa国际传媒渟ubstantial likelihood of conviction.sa国际传媒�

sa国际传媒淲e the RCMP know that sexual assault is a devastating crime that has traumatic and long-lasting effects on victims,sa国际传媒� read the statement.

sa国际传媒淢oreover, a poor experience with police investigators can bring more trauma to victims and discourage others from reporting these crimes.

sa国际传媒淲e are committed to strengthening police training and awareness, investigative accountability, victim support and public education and communication.sa国际传媒�

The RCMP said it is committed to ensuring sexual assault survivors feel comfortable coming forward.

sa国际传媒淲e want to ensure that all survivors of sexual assault feel comfortable bringing their allegations to the RCMP, receive the same standard of care regardless of jurisdiction, and trust investigators to thoroughly and professionally investigate these crimes,sa国际传媒� said the RCMP statement.

While those words might bring comfort to some sexual assault survivors, for Heather, itsa国际传媒檚 too little, too late.

sa国际传媒淜elowna is an incredibly toxic city when it comes to this stuff. It hasnsa国际传媒檛 changed since I was 15.sa国际传媒�

michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
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