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Women's Group to Protest Greenpoint Police Commander Over Rape Comments

By Gwynne Hogan | January 9, 2017 3:43pm | Updated on January 9, 2017 6:35pm
 Captain Peter Rose said he wasn't
Captain Peter Rose said he wasn't "too concerned" about an uptick in acquaintance rapes.
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Twitter/NYPD94Pct

GREENPOINT — Women's advocacy groups furious over a local police commander's comments that he was "not too concerned" about last year's increase in acquaintance rapes are firing back.

The National Organization for Women planned to rally Tuesday afternoon outside the 94th Precinct, while another national women's advocacy group, UltraViolet, circulated an online petition demanding that he be fired. The group said it had more than 45,000 signatures in support.

"We're organizing this rally to express the outrage that we are hearing from women all over New York City in response to this police captain's horrendous comments," said Jane Manning, director of advocacy for NOW. "Unfortunately Captain Rose is not an outlier. He expressing a belief out loud that we see put into practice every day in the handling of rape cases in New York City."

The protesters planned to gather at 1 p.m. Tuesday afternoon outside the precinct stationhouse at 100 Meserole Ave. and have called for a meeting with the NYPD commissioner.

The action comes after statements the commander made while describing an uptick in sexual assaults in Greenpoint, most of which Rose described as acquaintance rapes between coworkers or people who had met on dating apps like Tinder.

Had said he was "not too concerned" because most of the incidents last year qualified as acquaintance rapes and "not total-abomination rapes where strangers are being dragged off the streets."

Of the 13 rapes and attempted rapes in Greenpoint last year — up from eight the year before — there were arrests in only three cases.

His remarks drew sharp criticism Friday from elected officials and public figures including Mayor Bill de Blasio's office, Public Advocate Letitia James and Borough President Eric Adams. Six local representatives and local public safety group the Greenpoint Task Force called on Rose to publicly apologize.

Rose later publicly apologized for his comments on Twitter.

The NYPD previously denounced Rose's statements, though it said that in the "anonymous and random nature of rapes committed by strangers, detectives often face greater challenges in these types of crimes."

“Captain Rose's comments did not properly explain the complexity of issues involved with investigating rape complaints," said Deputy Police Commissioner Stephen Davis. "Every report of rape is thoroughly investigated by specially trained detectives in the NYPD’s Special Victims Unit. All complaints of rape and other types of sexual crimes are taken seriously whether they are committed by domestic partners, acquaintances, or strangers."

Greenpoint resident and rape survivor Rachel Wells posted a video on Facebook showing her trembling and crying after reading Rose's remarks.

She said she was raped twice in high school by men she knew, but didn't report it because she blamed herself for the attacks.

"I didn’t even acknowledge it for a decade because I thought it wasn’t a real rape," Wells, 30, a member of NOW, told DNAinfo New York. She added that she has since come to realize that what happened to her was rape after years of therapy.

"I think it's such a broad, sweeping misunderstanding and that’s why people feel guilty and people are ashamed," she said, "and they’re further shamed when people like Peter Rose don’t understand the comment he made."

Wells noted that the precinct commander's statements brought on a flood of emotions that caused her to break down.

"When I think back to my experience, in the 10 years that it took, that was the reason and that’s what's so scary is so many people don’t realize how invasive and damaging it can be when you’re kind of told in media and in culture you’re fine," she continued.

"You’re not fine."