NCJ Number
224064
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 35 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2008 Pages: 32,34-39,40
Date Published
August 2008
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article describes the SAFE kit mandate instituted during the 2005 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in an attempt to balance the exclusive needs of the sexual assault victims and the needs of the justice system.
Abstract
Investigators and prosecutors need victims to be examined as soon as possible after a rape in order to collect semen, hair, skin, or saliva (evidence) that the attacker may have forcefully transmitted in order to connect DNA evidence with the perpetrator. However, sexual assault victims need time to heal from the attack, emotionally and physically, before making choices on whether or not to pursue legal action. To address these issues Congress added a stipulation to the 2005 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), requiring States to provide free sexual assault exams and collection of rape kit evidence to survivors. The hope is that the Act will create balance between the conflicting needs of law enforcement’s need to collect physical evidence in a timely manner and victims’ needs for more time to recover and subsequently make decisions. With the SAFE kit mandate in place to balance the mutually exclusive needs of victims and the justice system, victims can recover and keep the avenue to justice open, should they choose to pursue it. This article discusses the reasoning behind the new mandate under the VAWA 2005 reauthorization; a potential solution to correcting former flaws with the procedure when responding to sexual assault victims nationwide.