Police provided a written apology to a sexual assault survivor after she discovered via a news article the man who assaulted her was on parole.
The man was sentenced and charged with rape in April 2021 and was due to be released on parole in August 2022. For offences like this, Police are meant to ask victims if they want to be included on the Victim Notification Register to ensure they are updated when there is a significant change in the offenders situation, for example, if they are applying for Parole.
In this case, the woman did want to be on the Register, but Police failed to tell the woman about the process. She found out via a Stuff news article the offender had applied for parole and she had missed the opportunity to give her views to the Parole Board.
Police agreed with the Authority to send a formal written apology to the woman, and the officer involved was spoken to.
IPCA: 22-14903