Do the police have to be involved if you have been spiked?

One-in-a-million

So with recent events especially here in England they are tightening the laws on spiking/drugging.

It brought back a memory from A few years back I had gone out for a drink with a friend from college and some of his friends. As I trusted my friend I assumed I could trust his friends too and so as it was just us at the time in the pub I said to my friend I was going toilet and to just keep an eye on my drink. I returned, drank my drink and all was good.. until 10 minutes later I started to feel strange, I had a headache, felt sick and was very sleepy.. I knew I couldn’t have been drunk as I’d only had 1 alcoholic drink and 2 soft drinks. I announced to my friend that I wanted to go home and he waited for a taxi with me.

I remember getting home and then I don’t remember anything until I woke up the next day, again I felt sick and very dehydrated. At that point I suspected that I may have been spiked however I was scared to get any medical help or tell anyone because I thought that by getting checked over I would be made to talk to the police which I didn’t want to do.


So I was wondering with crimes like spiking are you obliged to make a police report or can you seek medical help and not report it?

Stellaluna

@One-in-a-million Sorry to hear your drink was spiked. This is undoubtedly a very unsettling experience. Usually, the police require a test soon after being spiked because some drugs only take 12 hours to disappear from your system. It is possible to seek medical help without the police if you have been spiked by calling an ambulance or being taken to A&E. Remember, there is no judgement, and it was not your fault. If you find you are still struggling with the memories of how the spiking affected you, it could be an idea to seek out counselling. This could be accessed through The Mix or your GP.
Some general safety tips are: covering and watching drinks, sticking with friends, having a fully charged phone and plans for getting home.
Here is some more advice from The Mix https://www.themix.org.uk/crime-and-safety/victims-of-crime/support-for-drink-spiking-44285.html
It is always brave to share your experiences. I understand you might find it frightening to talk to the police about what happened, but it is a good idea to talk to your family and friends for support. Hope you can feel better reaching out to us at The Mix.
Take Care
StellaLuna

Laura_tigger82

Hey @One-in-a-million

Thanks for reaching out to us. I always appreciate how much courage it must take to reach out. I am so sorry to hear this happened to you. You definitely don’t deserve to be treated this way.

I can understand why you might feel scared to talk to people about what happened, but it is super important to report it if you feel comfortable doing so – it could prevent it from happening to someone else and is a criminal offence.

Sorry, I know this doesn’t directly answer your question, but each NHS site seems to vary its policy by location! The general rule of thumb is that you can always seek medical support, but they may of course have to report it if it is a criminal offence or in line with their confidentiality policy. I hope this at least semi-helps.

I also want to ask you, how do you feel you are doing at the moment? I hope you are well! If you do want to talk to us further about this though or anything else, please know we are always here for you, listening to you, and supporting you

One-in-a-million

@Laura_tigger82 @Stellaluna Thank you both, honestly I’m fine it was just something that got me thinking with there being new laws and stuff. I don’t go to clubs very much as I have had a few bed experiences but it’s always good to know where I stand.

Laura_tigger82

Hey @One-in-a-million

Thanks for your response. I can completely hear and understand why it might have got you thinking. I hope we helped. Take care of yourself and let us know if you have any more questions or anything else we can support you with!

Ed_

Hey @One-in-a-million as far as I am aware, there is no obligation to report these things. You have a right to feel safe when going out, particularly when you are among people you know and trust. It can be quite overwhelming to go through something like this, and so the important thing is that you feel safe and able to seek support with the impact on you, whether that is getting a health check up, to be able to talk through how this has made you feel or if you decide that you did want to make a report. The police should be trained to handle this sensitively, however remember that you have the right to decide whether you do speak to them or not, and whatever you decide, it is totally fine. We are all here for you if you wanted to talk it through with us