Three women file lawsuit against multiple local agencies over handling of sexual assault cases
Three women are filing a lawsuit against a number of local agencies regarding the handling of sexual assault cases.
Tuesday morning a press conference was held to explain the details of the suit. There are seven defendants listed on the lawsuit ranging from the City of Austin, Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore, former Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, Austin Police Chief Brian Manley, former Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo, Travis County Sheriff Sally Hernandez and Travis County.
Inside the lawsuit, it claims women victims of sexual assault have been denied equal access to justice and discriminated against based on their gender.
"These women and others like them don't have to walk around the city wondering where an attacker lurks on the next corner," said Jennifer Ecklund, a partner with the law firm representing victims.
Ecklund says they are hoping this lawsuit will bring change to how sexual assault cases are handled.
"It cannot be acceptable to anybody in this community that only one in 1,000 reported sexual assaults get prosecuted through trial in a year," said Ecklund.
The lawsuit claims the Austin Police Department and the Travis County Sheriff’s policies, customs and practices unconstitutionally discriminate against female victims of sexual assault.
"I lost more and more trust in every system and essentially in the world around me," said Marina Conner, who is one of the sexual assault victims present at Tuesday’s press conference.
It also states the DA's office prioritizes investigation, processing and prosecution of other crimes over investigation, processing and prosecution of sexual assaults against women.
"I'm one of countless women whose case was never investigated," said Julie Ann Nitsch, another sexual assault victim present at the conference.
While they are hoping this suit brings change they are also seeking damages, at this moment it's not known how much.
The City of Austin put out this statement regarding the lawsuit:
"The integrity of the criminal justice system is of utmost importance to the city and our law enforcement partners. We are aware of the issues raised in this lawsuit and will be reviewing the details as we determine our next steps."
This isn't this first time handling of sexual assault cases in Austin was put into question. Last year we reported how 849 out of 1,629 sexual assault kits were found with some signs of mold on the outside.
We reached out to the other agencies besides the City of Austin listed in the lawsuit. We are still waiting for a response.