And They SAY They Don't Want Sharia Law in Virginia

According to Think Progress, Norfolk [Virginia] police classified all sexual assault claims as “unfounded” by default.

The rules changed in the wake of a case involving a 22-year-old woman who reported a sexual assault only to be told by police, “If we find out that you’re lying, this will be a felony charge.”

The woman was attacked in her home by serial rapist and diagnosed sexual sadist Roy Ruiz Loredo on April 22, 2012. Over the course of reporting the crime, police repeatedly expressed skepticism that the woman was telling the truth, even after the woman submitted to an exhaustive physical exam.

“You’re telling us a different story than you told … the other detectives,” they said to her, as well as saying “This only happened hours ago. Why can’t you remember?” Finally in frustration, the woman terminated the interview with police.

However, a forensics investigator was able to lift DNA from the woman’s attacker off of a cup he used at the crime scene. Eight weeks later Loredo was arrested in Virginia Beach, VA when he tried to attack three women near his neighborhood.

[...]

In the wake of the department’s mistakes, Norfolk police chief Mike Goldsmith announced that there will be changes in police policy toward sexual assault victims, including the assumption by officers that people who report assaults are telling the truth. Officers will also be trained in helping victims cope with rape trauma and post-traumatic stress.

  Raw Story

Call me skeptical, but it’s a start.