Today, sexual assault survivors and advocates marked a long-awaited milestone. Two years after the Austin City Council approved a settlement for survivors whose cases were mishandled by the Austin Police Department from 2006-2019, City officials delivered a public apology to 15 plaintiffs. The apology was one of the terms of the settlement, along with significant policy changes and related investments.
In 2022, Council Member Alison Alter authored policy direction alongside the approval of the settlement, to require specialized training for the Sex Crimes Unit and the enactment of reforms identified in an evaluation of Austin’s sexual assault investigation process that she commissioned in 2019.
Alter, who has worked alongside survivors since 2018 to secure budget increases for victim services, improvements to Austin’s DNA testing capacity, and accountability from APD leadership, voiced her gratitude for the plaintiffs and expressed the need for continued progress: “I want to thank the brave survivors who came forward. No one deserves to experience sexual assault, and when it does happen, survivors deserve access to healing and justice. We could not have come this far without you, and we’re not going to stop until anyone who experiences sexual violence in our community can trust that their report will be fully investigated, and their healing will be supported.”
After hearing the apology, the survivors gathered with advocates, attorneys, and Council members outside of City Hall to reflect on the hard-fought progress and the path ahead. “For each of these plaintiffs there are many more individuals who reported an assault and experienced a system that did not support them, or never reported their assault because they didn’t have faith in that system,” Alter remarked. “This moment is meaningful to many in our community.”
She added: “As the last few days have shown, we have a lot more work ahead to make our systems more survivor-focused. I expect each of us, including the Interim City Manager and his appointees, to redouble our commitment to improving our sexual assault response.”
