This article summarizes research funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) about addressing the challenges of detecting drug-facilitated sexual assault.
This publication provides an overview of research funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) about the challenges of detecting drug-facilitated sexual assault (DFSA). This research includes projects that examine ways to improve forensic hair testing and how drugs modify blood proteins. Sexual assault is a pervasive crime. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey estimates that 1 in 4 women will experience attempted or completed rape in her lifetime. Drug-facilitated sexual assault (DFSA) involves the use of so-called “date rape drugs,” such as GHB or alprazolam, to render the victim vulnerable to attack. It is vital to understand when a sexual assault involves the use of drugs, both to help determine consent and for sentencing purposes, as DFSA involves more severe sentences because the court considers it a more heinous crime. The vast majority of sexual assaults are perpetrated by a person known to the victim. If the victim has a foreign substance in their body, it can speak to their inability to consent and may substantiate whether a crime has occurred. However, delays in reporting sexual assault — which may be days, weeks, or even longer — can make it difficult to detect drugs in fluids such as blood and urine because the body eliminates these drugs within a short time (typically a few days, if not hours).