Special Victims Unit

Purpose
The Durham Police Department’s Special Victims Unit (SVU) investigates crimes of sexual assault, child pornography, child physical abuse, allegations of child neglect and any other matter at the direction of the Criminal Investigations Division commander. The Special Victims Unit consists of investigators who specialize in child abuse and sexual assaults. SVU works closely with the Durham County District Attorney's Office and the Durham County Department of Social Services during an investigation. The goal of the Durham Police Department is to make Durham a safe city to live in.

Case Exceptions
The Special Victims Unit does not investigate domestic violence related cases or non- sex crimes committed by juvenile offenders. If a sex crime is involved, the Special Victims Unit may assist in the investigation. Crimes that are domestic violence related are investigated by the Domestic Violence Unit and crimes committed by juvenile offenders are investigated by Patrol Services Bureau district investigators.