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Victim and Witness Services 2 Your Involvement with the Police While you are not obliged to call the police to report your victimization, it is highly recommended that you do. By calling the police, you open the doors for many different avenues of assistance. Some services such as the Victim Witness Assistance Program will not offer help until charges are laid. Other forms of assistance such as financial assistance (Criminal Injuries Compensation Board) will not be offered unless the police were informed of the crime. The police officer that responds to your call is a caring and trained professional, who will help you through this difficult time. Moreover, utmost care will be exercised to maintain an atmosphere of confidentiality and privacy. If you would like to speak to a female police officer, simply express this desire to the dispatcher. More than likely, a female officer will be available to answer your call. When the police officer responds to your call, do your best to explain what happened. Inform the police officer if you require medical assistance. The police officer will likely ask you to make a verbal or written statement. If you are too distressed at the moment, you may have the option to make a statement at a later time. A statement is a written record of your complaint and includes everything that you can remember about the victimization. This report will be used by officers conducting the investigation and may be used at a later time during court proceedings. Before the police officer leaves, be sure to record his/her name and badge number. Most police officers will leave you their business card. It is important that you safeguard this information. The police officer that responded to your call is your life-line to receiving on-going information about your case. Furthermore, if you remember anything of significance that you forgot to include on your statement, you may contact this police officer at a later date to amend your statement. Before leaving, the police officer may also set up a second or third interview with you. While these interviews may seem repetitious and leave you feeling that the police do not believe you, this is not the case. These additional interviews may be necessary to clarify important facts and possible to add more detail. Note: If you have any questions or there is something that you don't understand, please ask the police officer involved. There is no such thing as bad or wrong questions. You have the right to ask. Note: If you chose, you can have a support person of your choice (sexual assault worker, friend, relative) with you during police interviews. Note: A suitable and private place will be found for interviews. Call the Smiths Falls Police Service at 283-4141. Step 3.1 Victim Witness Assistance Program (VWAP)
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