b'F E A T U R ESafe Justice Navigating theway forwardBy Deputy Director Maria McDonald andDetective Inspector J.D. (Jordan) Whitesell, Ontario Provincial PoliceW orld events over the last few yearsMissing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Calls have given police leaders reason toto Justice and the Ontario Major Case Management Model. pause and consider the operationalHowever, victims cannot access those rights if they do not impactofahumanrights-basedknow about them. The responsibility in supporting access, approach to policing. Founded uponaccordingtoareportbytheFederalOmbudsmanfor dignity,respectandequalityforall,ahumanrightsVictims of Crime (FOVC), falls in part on the police during approachsupportspolicingwithempathyapeople- their engagement with victims and/or survivors in the firstapproachthatintegratestrauma-informedandinvestigative process: victim-centred approaches into investigations.1 Police are often the first contact, and the gatekeepers, for victims,Allcriminaljusticeofficialsshouldberequiredto survivors,familymembersandcommunitiestoaccesshave basic knowledge and understanding of trauma justice which is safe, trauma informed, victim centred,and to provide trauma-sensitive responses to victims. culturally sensitive, and free from bias.Canadians deserve better from their criminal justice Police have legal, ethical and moral obligations whensystem. If Canadians are to have confidence in the assisting victims, survivors and family members who havecriminal justice system, they have to know that the been impacted by crime. This is reflected in the language of legislation, whereby police should assist and have1 Alyson Kilpatrick, A Human Rights Based Approach to Policing inanunderstandingof(victim)needs,inkeepingwithIreland (ICCL, 2018) available at https://www.iccl.ie/wp-content/theComprehensiveOntarioPoliceServicesAct,2019.uploads/2018/09/Human-Rights-Based-Policing-in-Ireland.pdf; OPP A rights-based approach is also reflected in the OntarioFramework for a Victim-Centred Approach; 2020-2022 OPP Strategic Plan, Craig E. Ferrell JR, Policing with Empathy, IACP Police Chiefs Victim Bill of Rights, the Canadian Victim Bill of Rights, theMagazine, October 2021. 26 H.Q. Winter 2021/22'