NEWS > 06 August 2006

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Belleville News-Democrat - Bel
06 August 2006

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Rape victim advocates fear cop

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Prosecutors say a four-year string of rapes was solved with this summer's arrest of a police sergeant found lurking in dark clothes after a woman reported an early morning break-in attempt at her home in this central Illinois city.

But advocates for rape victims worry the high-profile case could be a setback for their cause, discouraging women from coming forward to report a crime they say already goes unreported in seven of every 10 cases nationwide.

"This sure does not help the future of trying to get victims to report they have been assaulted when they think there also is the possibility that there also are perpetrators in positions of authority," said Vickie Smith, director of Stepping Stones, a Bloomington agency that aids sexual assault victims.

City officials say victims should draw comfort, not fear, from the Bloomington police investigation that netted charges against 41-year-old Jeff Pelo, a 17-year department veteran accused in four rapes dating back to 2002.

"I think it reflects good on us that we're able to conduct an investigation on one of our own," said City Manager Tom Hamilton. "They don't blink an eye if it's one of their own or anybody else."

Still, some officials worry the national attention that followed Pelo's arrest could be a black eye for this white-collar city of about 67,000 people midway between Chicago and St. Louis, where two-time Democratic presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson II grew up and State Farm Insurance Co. is based.

"It's unfortunate. We would much rather Bloomington be known for being on Money magazine's list of best places to live than for this type of investigation of a police officer," said first-term Mayor Steve Stockton.

Authorities say the case grabbed headlines because it's rare for police to run afoul of the law, and when it happens it often involves on-the-job misconduct such as excessive force or false arrest, not crimes against the people officers are sworn to protect.

In Illinois, 101 police officers have lost their certification because of criminal convictions since 1999, said Sheila Albright of the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, which regulates nearly 38,000 officers across the state, excluding state police.

No figures are compiled for the U.S., where about 430,000 officers worked for the nearly 11,000 cities surveyed for the FBI's annual Unified Crime Report in 2004.

But Raymond Franklin, who is creating a new database for the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training, contends about 19,000 officers in 44 states have lost their certification since 1999 due to criminal or administrative violations.

Neither agency had statistics on the crimes that cost police officers their certification, but Albright said rape charges are "highly unusual." Bloomington police spokesman Duane Moss said he knew of no rape charges against an officer in the department's history.

A hometown newspaper's online Web log has racked up hundreds of anonymous postings since Pelo was arrested in June, debating the police force's integrity and whether its image and the city's might be tarnished. But city officials say they have received surprisingly few calls so far.

Andy Nappi says he thinks most people understand the department and its 130 officers shouldn't be judged on Pelo's case any more than the business world should be colored by the Enron and Tyco scandals.

"That's not a reflection of everyone who occupies a position of business authority, and the same is true in the public sector. ... We don't live in a perfect world," said Nappi, 66, retired dean of the college of business at Illinois State University in neighboring Normal.

Mark Stone of Bloomington agreed.

"I think it's a bad egg. I don't have a problem with the police department," said Stone, a 50-year-old MRI technician.

But some rape victims might have reservations, advocates say. They fear Pelo's case could have a chilling effect on sexual assault reports, like the highly publicized cases involving Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant and Duke University's lacrosse team.

"This is an especially egregious violation of the public's trust. It tarnishes the reputation of law enforcement and could cause some victims to be more reluctant," said Lyn Schollett, general counsel for the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

Smith, whose government-funded agency aids and counsels about 150 sexual assault victims annually, said fewer reports likely means more attacks, based on research that shows abusers who prey on adults attack seven times before they are caught.

"We do encourage victims to report assaults to police because you hate to think they will get away with it and do it again," Smith said.

Terry Mors, a Western Illinois University criminal justice professor, said he doubts Pelo's case will curb assault reports because police acted rather than sweeping it under the rug to protect their own.

"The way I see it, four victims went to the police and four times the police did something about it. It doesn't matter who it was, they're going to investigate," said Mors, who was a police officer for 17 years in Gurnee, a suburb of Chicago, before joining WIU's faculty.

Pelo's attorney, Steve Skelton, says the debate is moot because his client is innocent of the rape charges, which capped an investigation that went public in December after police and the FBI ruled four unsolved rapes were likely committed by the same person.

"My client would like to have the actual perpetrators of these offenses apprehended and proven guilty probably more than anyone else in McLean County," Skelton said.

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Article sourced from

Belleville News-Democrat - Bel06 August 2006

Rape victim advocates fear cop

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Belleville News-Democrat - Bel
06 August 2006