A former police chief today said she would struggle to report a crime because of the way female victims are routinely judged and humiliated .
Sue Fish, who retired as Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police in 2017, said going through the criminal justice system was thankless for women, adding that victim blaming was now endemic .
Ms Fish told Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 4 s Woman s Hour that there were still significant parts of policing where there is a very toxic culture of sexism, of misogyny, that objectifies women .
The former top officer was speaking amid fierce backlash against the Met Police s handling of a vigil for 33-year-old marketing executive Sarah Everard after one of its own officers, Wayne Couzens, was charged with her kidnap and murder.
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Scene of crime officers today took away bags of items - including scissors and what appeared to be a long tool handle - from areas in Kent where they were investigating Sarah Everard s murder.
The forensic experts, dressed in blue protective suits, could be seen walking away from the four sites of interest in Sandwich with the plastic bags.
One had a pair of bandage cutting scissors inside while others contained a black item in a smaller zip lock pouch.
What appeared to be the handle to some kind of tool was put into a transparent protective tubing to take away for analysis.
12:08 EDT, 17 March 2021
A top Met Police boss has today defended the actions of officers at the Sarah Everard vigil saying they were doing their duty , after the force faced accusations of heavy-handedness.
Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House claimed police had faced abuse and had plastic water bottles thrown at them after asking crowds to disperse from Saturday s memorial event at Clapham Common.
He refused to apologise on behalf of officers, who he said had acted professionally and proportionately .
Sir Stephen said the vigil had complied with Covid rules during the day, but had become compacted in the evening as more people gathered.