Falling Through the Cracks of a F.W.P.D. Assault Investigation

No one will deny that being a police officer is easy.  Everyone knows that balancing law and order comes with great responsibility, and a tremendous amount of personal sacrifice.  I applaud the men and women who serve and protect, without bias.  However, we cannot deny that we’re seeing more and more headlines about those in blue uniform, who take the oath to protect and serve, yet become obstacles to justice for members of our society, who are marginalized because of social economics, race, or gender.  Because of societal marginalization, many of these individuals become easy prey, because of circumstances that render them powerless to fight back against crimes committed against them, by those in power.

Many women, especially women of color, have often been considered the least of these, when seeking justice against sexual abusers, and defending themselves when it comes to workplace harassment.  It is apparent that law enforcement officers will overlook abuse of women of color, because oftentimes their communities will not stand up for them, without their ability to afford legal counsel to defend themselves.

[ Commentary:  Bill Cosby, and how we dismiss victims ]

When we look at recent national headlines that have included battery or abuse against women of color, the police were engaged in the crime, and even prolonged charges being brought against the individuals who were responsible.  By way of the hands of law enforcement, there is a disturbing pattern of not being believed or even taken seriously, when crimes against the victims are committed.


In the case of the ex-Oklahoma police officer and current convicted rapist, Daniel Holtzclaw, there was an instance of a previous report of his assault on a woman.  Many have concluded that because his victim had a criminal record, that her case was not given priority.  However, when a second victim, who did not have a criminal record, reported officer Holtzclaw, the police then proceeded to do more due diligence, and eventually connected him to the first attack.  Many of the victims at Holtzclaw’s trial cited being afraid of the police, as the reason for not being forthcoming in reporting their attacks, and feeling powerless in speaking against an omniscient-like force, such as a police officer, within a marginalized community. Each woman stated a fear of cops, or lack of hope in being believed, because of their own circumstances.  If the second victim had not been someone who could point a finger back at her abuser, without having a blemish on her own character, it’s doubtful that Holtzclaw would have been stopped.

In the case of Sandra Bland, her character was scrutinized after her death, rather than the actions of the arresting officer, before her death.  Bland is on tape, being told to be quiet.  She spoke up and stated her rights to a law enforcement officer.  We all know by now, how that stop turned out, with her being arrested.  What’s often not mentioned is that the second officer who came to assist the arresting officer, stood by, as if she was watching meat being ground.  With the presence of a second officer, who was female, we would have hoped the situation would’ve de-escalated, because of her gender.  Instead, the female officer was just as abrasive, as her male counterpart.  It appears that a woman of color cannot speak out, nor know her rights.  When she takes actions of self-defense, against the indefensible, then consequences can be served, or she’ll be marginalized, even more so, by a system that she must prove has wronged her.

I can certainly identify with each of the above scenarios, in my personal encounter with the Fort Worth Police Department, when I reported my Assault by Contact, on August 7, 2015.  As I’ve previously stated on my blog, I have been seeking justice, in my ongoing plight against Jim Austin, who I was employed by, for months, in 2015.  My real-life drama began one evening after a Ft. Worth City Council Meeting, when I was driven to a park against my will and was ‘assaulted by contact’ by Jim Austin, in June of 2015.  At that time, I was employed by Jim Austin, working in Sales for www.jimaustinonline.com, as well as assisting in job duties for his other Austin companies.  Needless to say, that being a single mother, supporting her high school Senior, all while taking on the responsibility of reporting my assault to the proper authorities, has unfortunately caused much angst in my private life.

Although I was traumatized by my employer, Jim Austin, I was undeniably in need of my job.  Because of the circumstance of needing to earn living wages, I endured weeks of continued sexual harassment, until I could no longer stomach being in my employer’s presence.  After getting the courage to refuse anymore of his inappropriate advances, my pay was instantly reduced to zero. After I confronted him by phone regarding work related issues, I realized that my employment was not solely based on advertising sales and marketing, but obviously for more sinister intentions. I finally made the bold move to contact the police to report my assault, which still eerily affects me, whenever I hear the mention of his name, or upon receipt of promotional emails from him.

My own personal experience, dealing with the Fort Worth Police Department, has subsequently helped me to comprehend why so many victims of sexual harassment and/or abuse do not trust police officers, and possibly, may never report their attacks.  The police can be as apathetic as one’s abuser, and often make someone wonder, why even bother to seek their help.  

I recall, when I contacted the police to make my initial report, I was met by two officers, in a restaurant parking lot.  There, in the middle of parking spaces and cars whizzing by, I begin retelling the events of the night of my assault at a park, by my employer, and the ongoing harassment that continued for weeks after the assault.  As I was repeating the awful details of my ordeal, my eyes fell on the nametag of one the officers that was, ironically, printed as, “J. Austin”.  I stopped mid-sentence and asked him, “Are you related to Jim Austin?” Barely hearing his response, I remember thinking to myself, “This cannot be a good sign.  This nightmare is going to get worse.”  And it did.  After meeting with those two officers to submit my report, I drove home praying that this would be the beginning of the end, of how women are treated at the hands of an individual with perceived power, and influence. 

Upon taking the first daytime opportunity to rush downtown Ft. Worth to pay for a print out of my police report, I stared in shock, at the document given to me, as I suddenly realized that my name, race, and the date of the attack were all, in some way, wrong on the report.  I wondered, how could everything that identified me as a person be wrong, as well as the date of the incident that’s etched in my memory, also be documented incorrectly, on the very piece of paper that would start the process for the wheels of justice to begin turning?

I immediately contacted the police to make the necessary corrections.  In bracing myself to recount the events of the evening in the park again, and retell the hostile environment of working for someone who was sexually charged throughout the day, I did not think to ask to review the police officer’s handwritten notes to make sure the information I gave the officers would be the same information they submitted in the police report.  But looking back over the last few months, and seeing the number of news stories that show what is told to officers, compared to what is in the written reports, can vary greatly, as I am no longer in shock about the many inconsistencies logged by police, in my initial report.  I have learned, this could easily end up being routine, for those who need legal help the most.  You’re literally at the mercy of what the police say you stated, or whatever else they may say happened to you.

It was expressed to me by a phone representative of the FWPD, that what was written by the officers could not be changed on that initial report’s print out, rather their system’s database would have a “Supplement” added to my report, including my corrected name, race, and date of the assault.  I was also informed that a Sex Crimes Detective would soon follow up with me, to further discuss details of my case.

Approximately a week later, I met with Detective Maricelia Maldonado, of the FWPD, at a police substation in Fort Worth, to go over my report.  With the detective being a female, and working in a highly sensitive area of law enforcement, I was expecting a thoroughly prompt follow up, and follow through for closure.  After meeting with the detective, it made me realize that even characters being depicted on scripted t.v. shows, portraying sensitive SVU officers, are not necessarily the same types of officers who’ll walk through a police station’s briefing room doors, in reality.

As Detective Maldonado reviewed the particulars of my case with me, I observed that she seemed to place more emphasis on my delay in reporting the Assault by Contact incident, than the details of my ongoing harassment, throughout my employment.  I was being challenged with the burden of justifying why I continued to work for Jim Austin, in lieu of my circumstances, more than questioning why would a man assault his female employee at a park, and continue to harass her at workplace premises, for weeks.  Detective Maldonado reiterated that she was not biased, nor was she taking sides, although I could not ignore the veiled double standards, when crimes against women are reported.  The detective and I talked for about thirty minutes or so, before winding down our meeting with a promise to call me in a few days, after she met with Jim Austin, to get his statement on record.  I am still waiting to receive a direct phone call, as of January, 2016.


The brief follow up that I’ve received from Detective Maldonado after our meeting, only came after I contacted her via email, as a last resort, since my voice messages were not being returned.  Since my initial meeting with the detective, I’ve only heard from her a few times, in direct replies to my email inquiries, in which she informed me that she was still looking into my Assault by Contact case, and hoped to have a resolution in a couple of weeks.

As of yet, not once, has anyone in the Fort Worth Police Department called me, since August 2015, although, I have reached out to them repeatedly.  I have left numerous messages and sent various emails.  I even reached out to the Fort Worth Police Department via social media, to no avail.  Not only am I a victim of an assault and months of ongoing harassment by my former employer, but I am clearly a victim of circumstance.  After all, I am a woman of color, reporting a crime committed against myself, whom did not hire an attorney at my side upon entering the police station, whose presence and council could have made sure that I was worthy of being served and protected.

As the Fort Worth Police Department begins the year 2016 with new leadership at the helm, I urge Police Chief, Joel Fitzgerald to look at how victims of crimes are treated, and how detectives determine who is worthy of follow up, and how individuals with perceived power are treated, when they are the perpetrators.  By addressing these issues, those who need protecting the most, will begin to trust that the law is for everyone, and not just the affluent members of our community.

Ultimately, it is my sincere hope, in the year 2016, that all of the women, who’ve personally shared with me their similar experiences, allegedly committed by the same individual, will be willing to finally come forward to share their own accounts with the Fort Worth Police Department, ensuring that the reign of one individual’s perceived power on our community, will finally cease.