PART THREE OF A FOUR PART SERIES
Victimology and Witness handling
INTRODUCTION:
Criticisms, no more criticisms – with over fifty years in policing and investigations, the last ten years almost solely concentrating on missing persons, I have identified gaps in most cases. However, I am generally not overly critical, why? Because I understand reality and the limitations and pressures in which police work.
I also understand that it is the front-line officer who is usually the target for criticism, which is often double-barrelled with the full-choke hit coming from superiors who ironically set the standards of operational resources and training which are a major contributor in influencing the errors of judgement or investigative gaps highlighted. (I will briefly raise some of the management responsibilities in Part 4 of this series - to come later).
True to the often-hectic nature of an emergency call this is only going to be a brief foray into what is sometimes a journey into a complex unknown and evolving case where a person has been reported missing in a bush or wilderness area.
Ordinarily to cover this subject in its entirety we would have to discuss a whole range of topics including communication, investigative senses and thinking, biases, and the depths of analytical thinking. However, this is a briefing only, and the in-depth narrative on those and other related topics will be left for another day.
Also, in order to put this into a realistic perspective, from the outset I am going to state that the points and considerations raised here are for ‘The Perfect World’ scenario and we all know that there is no such thing as a ‘Perfect World’. However, the points I do raise, are in the main identified gaps from just one high-profile missing person case. However, they have similarly been identified in other cases in many jurisdictions, in many countries, over many years.
PART 3: Victimology and Witness handling
CAMEO SCENARIO
A family member is at a trailhead car park and is reporting a missing adult lone male family member as an overdue hiker. It is late afternoon; the hiker had set out early morning for a four-hour hike along a wide and navigable trail in a heavily-wooded water catchment area. He was extremely well equipped with GPS, phone, food, and water.
In this case the call-taker took the basic details and despatched a police unit to attend. (The reporting family member heard a supervisor in the background comment that her husband had got himself lost). Sometime later a uniformed police unit arrived, and a police helicopter was observed overhead.
CONTACT & COMMUNICATION
Sensitivity when communicating with the family of a missing person is critical, yet often mishandled. In many cases this is due to a lack of empathy on the part of the communicator, which is not just a criticism or comment directed solely at police but is relevant to the majority within the community. It is mostly due to a lack of knowledge of the depth of hurt and the ambiguous loss[i] a family member will feel, as the result of losing a loved one to the world of the missing.
Care should be taken to show concern and sympathy for their situation. Limiting police to have direct contact, to only those who are appointed, skilled, and necessary in order to minimise error or inconsistencies in the standard or quality of service and support provided.
Communicate in a careful but open manner, explain what is happening and why. Treat all their input as important, and with interest. Too often we have heard family members say that anything they have said has been brushed aside and ignored.
Make notes of what they say. This always presents as professional and shows that you are interested. It is also invaluable in providing something to go back to, if things go in an unexpected or unforeseen direction.
It may be that the case will be unresolved or may end up with the loved one being found deceased. At some point the case may be closed or it may be in the cold case file, with no new leads to investigate. It is worth thinking of making a diary entry to re-connect with the family every six months or once a year, just to see how they are, and to let them know what is happening or not happening. It does not matter if there are no new leads, families I have spoken to understand that. They just do not want their missing loved one to be forgotten.
PASTORAL SUPPORT
Many of the larger police agencies have a network of multi-denominational police chaplains available to assist and support in various situations where needed. Due to the ability to specialty train, these services could be utilised to support the families of the missing. Specialist support groups such as ‘The Missed Foundation’[ii] could be called on where required, to assist in providing advice and training. However, the Missed Foundation is a charity and relies on funding to continue its vital work.
WITNESSES
Witnesses are a ticking time bomb often waiting in the unknown to blow-up an investigation. There have been so many cases where they have been missed for all manner of reasons. Sometimes it has been because there has not been a doorknock of the local area, or there has not been a call for witnesses put out in the media. In a number of cases, witnesses have said that they have tried to provide evidence to police, although usually to those who are not directly investigating the case. However, they have been turned away with responses such as, “You can’t tell us. You’ll have to report that to the detectives working on the case.” Or “I don’t think that the detectives will be interested in that, but thanks for letting us know anyway.” Or “Can you come back tomorrow afternoon; I’m a bit busy right now.” In all of the three instances quoted, the officer at the counter took no details of the witnesses.
In all three of the examples in the paragraph above, the witnesses’ information and the brushing off at various police stations, was eventually made known to the families of the missing persons and/or the media but not made known to investigating detectives for some time.
The ramifications are obvious… loss of evidence, loss of time, and organisational and personal harm to investigators, victims’ families, and the case.
MEDIA
Whilst the media need the facts of the story, they also need an angle or some sensational point of infotainment to hook the viewing or listening public. Any extra pieces of information that were not part of the initial release, are always jumped on and will generally guarantee another crack in the media. Media are generally cooperative and helpful in broadcasting any police media calls for public information, but so often we will see a broadcast which is lacking in the details provided by the police, as to what they are asking the public for. The media are your access to millions of volunteers, i.e. the public who can be out there working for you, THEY JUST NEED TO BE TASKED BY YOU.
I previously mentioned ‘infotainment’ (I know it is an ugly term, but that is what it is called). The media thrive on feeding it to the public. It is all about sensationalism, which is connected to our basic human need to be stimulated. This relates back to all of the brief comments in parts 1 and 2 of this series about how critically obvious it is a first responder or investigator fails in some respect. If the media find out about it, they will broadcast it. More especially if the family raises it.
PART 4: NEXT MONTH – Management Response – The Gaps in the Whole Process.
Note: For presentation options on this series please contact the writer on our website at www.footprintsinthewilderness.com.au
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Written by Valentine Smith APM (Co-founder of Footprints in the Wilderness)
Footprintsinthewilderness.com.au – October 2024
[i] Ambiguous loss confuses families, prevents resolution of the loss, and freezes the grief process, paralysing couple and family functioning. (www.ambiguousloss.com) For more information, please refer to Dr Pauline Boss’s books.
[ii] https://missed.org.au is an Australian based organisation.
Well done, looking forward to reading Part Four.