Another UK Grooming Gang.

[Wallfire]

The Inquiry... or something vaguely like one.

I can't say much about this. It is not that I won't say much, I just can't say much.

We have a very strong program available for victims of sexual assault, abuse, domestic, and intimate partner violence. We do several community events a year to get out the word and to be a welcome and available presence in our local communities.  

In my area, Muslims communities are very much like the deaf communities, they are very hard to recognize, and are not enclaves like in some places. 

There are some groups that are present in plain sight that you would not be aware of if you are not part of that group. 

We can only help those that seek our services, but I can tell you that it is worth all the crazy hours and little compensation, everytime some calls us for help. 

Not all cases are SVU television episodes, but they all deserve and get our full attention. It is disconcerting for some that sometimes we are unable to give them what they want, because we have a pesky little master, called the "law" that we have to adhere to.

Some cases are extremely frustrating because the case does not have enough evidence to proceed to trial. While the forensic shows do a good job of spreading the light, they do a better job of spreading false expectations. 

I have caused immense anger and frustration for some of my patients when I have to inform them that I can't do a swab and tell them who touched them, in 30 minutes. That frustration severely intensifies, when I tell them that it could take up to 120 days to be processed and even if we find foreign DNA, if the match is not in the database, we can't identify who it belongs to. 

I won't tell you about the times I have had parents dragging in their children demanding I exam them and reveal to them if their child is still a virgin or not. News flash! Vaginal exams "can not " tell if you or your child is a virgin.

I love that the shows increase awareness, even if it is on a minimal level, but they have a tendency to produce great expectations from the public that is unrealistic in real life. And even if we have enough evidence to proceed to trial, it does not mean it will hold up in court. The law cannot be circumvented, so the outcomes are not always what we would like. This can cause a frustrating and angering outcome for the victim and the home team. 

It is an on going battle that we get better at fighting everyday. Technology is improving in leaps and bounds but it too has to run it course, before it is accepted as sound and solid in a court of law. 

We learn from every case we have. We learn from our failures and successes. It will never be a problem that we won't have among us. It has been with us from before Biblical times and will likely follow us into the end of times, we just have to keep fighting its evil presence among us.

You work in the safe area, and be grateful for that. When you get in deep and understand how dark the whole thing is, who belongs to the powerful groups, police leaders, high up social workers, judges, minsters. 
When you get phone calls from the police telling they know everything about you, when you get phone calls telling you your pregnant wife will be found dead with the unborn child ripped out of her, when you have blood spilled over your car, and some doctor you go to for a check up makes the comment that was a bloody day. When these things start happening to the team then you know what the work is and how evil it all is.
I know people who these things have happened to.