Justice Department Announces Investigation Of New York City Police Department’s Special Victims Division

The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a civil pattern or practice investigation into the Special Victims Division (SVD) of the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The investigation will assess whether the SVD engages in a pattern or practice of gender-biased policing. The investigation will include a comprehensive review of the policies, procedures and training for SVD investigations of sexual assault crimes, including how SVD interacts with survivors and witnesses, collects evidence and completes investigations; any steps NYPD has taken to address deficiencies in its handling of sexual assault crimes; how SVD allocates staffing and other resources; and the services and support offered to survivors of sexual assault.