Improving Sexual Assault Kit Outcomes

Researchers at Brigham Young University,[1] funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), have identified connections between the development of a CODIS-eligible DNA profile and attributes associated with sexual assault victims and assault characteristics.

CODIS, the Combined DNA Index System, enables forensic laboratories to exchange and compare DNA profiles electronically. This system can enable users to link evidence from one sexual assault to either a known individual or another sexual assault. CODIS-eligible[2] DNA profiles developed from a sexual assault kit are critical to developing investigative leads and charges related to the assault, especially when the person who perpetrated the assault is unknown.

The researchers evaluated previously processed sexual assault kits from three agencies with different protocols. They collected, categorized, and grouped the data across a range of variables. The researchers found that victim characteristics (such as age, gender, or having showered following an assault) and assault characteristics (such as an unknown relationship with the person, nonfatal strangulation, or loss of consciousness) had a meaningful impact on predicting the ability to generate a CODIS-eligible DNA profile.

These findings contribute to the knowledge base on sexual assault kit collection and processing and the development of CODIS-eligible DNA profiles. The findings help criminal justice practitioners — including sexual assault nurse examiners, forensic scientists, law enforcement, and victim advocates — engage in best practices when providing information to victims that can shape their post-assault experience.

About the Article

This article was published as part of NIJ Journal issue 286.

This article discusses the following award:

• “Assessment of Sexual Assault Kit (SAK) Evidence Selection Leading to Development of SAK Evidence Machine-Learning Model (SAK-ML Model),” award number 2019-NE-BX-0001

Notes

note 1] National Institute of Justice funding award description, “[Assessment of Sexual Assault Kit (SAK) Evidence Selection Leading to Development of SAK Evidence Machine-Learning Model (SAK-ML Model),” at the Department of Public Safety State Utah, award number 2019-NE-BX-0001.

note 2] For information on CODIS eligibility at the national level, see FBI Laboratory, [National DNA Index System (NDIS) Operational Procedures Manual (Version 4), Federal Bureau of Investigation: FBI Laboratory, Washington, DC, May 1, 2016.

About the author

Tracey Johnson, MSFS, is a physical scientist in NIJ’s Office of Investigative and Forensic Sciences.

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