attackers by physically touching them. This from the Women's Resource Centre (WRC) which charged yesterday that the practice should be stopped as it can cause victims to be further traumatised.

Two way mirrors are not used in police identification parades in Bermuda. The practice, which is not denied by the Police Service, has been brought to the attention of both Public Safety Minister, Paula Cox, and Police Commissioner Jean-Jacques Lemay by the WRC.

In a letter delivered to both the Minister and the Police Commissioner on November 26, the WRC expressed their concerns and urged that a two way mirror system be put into place.

But to date the WRC have had no response from either the minister or the Police Commissioner.

"The failure of police to use a two way mirror or protective screen provides just one more way where the victim is put at risk,'' Penny Dill head of the WRC told The Royal Gazette last night.

"When victims have to come physically face to face with their attackers it understandably is often very traumatic. "We at the Centre had always thought that there was a two way mirror system in place with police ID parades but we have spoken to police officers and done quite a bit of research in this area, and this is not the case.

Victims `at risk' in ID line-ups "In fact I spoke to a woman who said not only did she have to face her assailant, but that the officer told her to go up and touch the guilty party on the shoulder.'' Ms Dill said that she had spoken to a Police superintendent who confirmed that victims are expected to identify their attackers by touching them on the shoulder.

But she noted that her information from a police detective, was that many officers in the service do not know that victims can actually point to identify assailants.

Asked if the Bermuda Police Service uses two way mirrors, Police spokesperson Evelyn James Barnett would comment no further than to say: "We follow the British judiciary system.'' But Ms Dill revealed that two way mirrors are used in Britain as well as Canada and the US.

"No legislation needs to be changed for this to come about in fact all that is needed is that a video camera be installed on the complainant's side,'' she said.

"The refusal of a victim to take part in a procedure which might bring his or her assailant to justice does not appear to us, to assist the justice system as a whole.

"They (the Police Service) should be able to set up just a single video camera for this purpose. And I'm sure that if cost is touted as a problem, a glass company would be willing to install the mirror.'' POLICE POL CRIME CRM