Crimes of sexual violence continue to be misunderstood even though there has been significant research surrounding the dynamics of sexual assault and its impact on victims during the last three decades. Unfortunately, too many people still believe the outdated and disproved mythology that surrounds sexual violence. Rape myths shift the blame for the crime from the rapist to the victim. When a fact-finder in a sexual assault case accepts a rape myth as true, the prosecutor faces tremendous barriers to achieving justice for victims and holding offenders accountable for their crimes. This article is the first in a series that will explain strategies to educate juries about sexual violence facts and overcome common misconceptions. In addition to providing data-driven information about sexual assault based on research, journal articles, and authoritative publications, this article will suggests ideas to improve jury selection techniques.
10 Strategies for Prosecuting Child Sexual Abuse at the Hands of a Family Member
The impact of sexual assault on a victim is devastating and the effects are long lasting. Victims of child sexual abuse may suffer physical injury, depression, self-destructive behavior, anxiety, feelings of isolation and stigma, shame, poor self-esteem, difficulty in trusting others, a tendency toward re-victimization, substance abuse, and sexual maladjustment. When the perpetrator is a family member, victims often suffer the emotional scars of guilt, betrayal and fear as well. Judges and juries unfamiliar with the dynamics of sexual assault may overlook offenders’ grooming tactics or misperceive common victim reactions to abuse as evidence of the victim’s lack of credibility. Prosecutors handling these cases face unique challenges. This article outlines ten strategies that will help prosecutors prepare and litigate cases of sexual abuse perpetrated against a child by a family member.
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Prosecuting Cases of Sexual Abuse in Confinement
Sexual abuse in confinement has persistently presented tremendous challenges to investigators and prosecutors because of internal and external barriers to reporting, including the behaviors, actions, and decision-making power of first responders that may result in the failure to make an official report to law enforcement. Additional challenges include issues related to evidence collection and retention, identification of witnesses, and multi-level biases against inmates. This article examines the Prison Rape Elimination Act and national standards related to a victim-centered, offender-focused investigation and prosecution of a sexual abuse in confinement. The issue discusses detailed strategy for prosecuting these cases, including investigation, dealing with gang involvement, and trial testimony.
Walking A Tightrope: Balancing Victim Privacy and Offender Accountability in Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prosecutions Part I
Domestic violence and sexual assault crimes are among the most sensitive and challenging cases to investigate and prosecute. They involve extremely personal information, which the prosecution needs and the defense may demand, and which victims are understandably reluctant to share. The purpose of this article is to help criminal justice professionals understand what kinds of information victims generally consider to be private and to facilitate their ability to explain—to victims and other professionals—what information is legally protected as private. This Strategies article is Part I of a two-part series addressing two types of legally protected information: confidentiality and privilege. Part I provides an overview of confidentiality to assist prosecutors in balancing offender accountability with the safety needs and expectations of victims during criminal investigations and prosecutions.
Walking A Tightrope: Balancing Victim Privacy and Offender Accountability in Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prosecutions Part II
Part II of this series on protecting victim privacy in domestic abuse and sexual assault cases discusses common statutory or evidentiary privileges and the scenarios in which conflicts with these privileges may arise. The article also provides prosecutors with strategies to protect privileges when the privacy interests of victims may outweigh the obligation to disclose.
Williams v. Illinois and Forensic Evidence – The Bleeding Edge of Crawford
The application of Crawford principles in the context of forensic evidence continues to plague the criminal justice system. The United States Supreme Court’s decision in Williams v. Illinois raises more questions than it answers about when and how an expert may testify to conclusions based upon the opinions or work of other (non-testifying) experts or technicians. This article reviews the relevant case law, and explores how trial prosecutors can present a case involving forensic testing conducted by a multitude of technicians and experts. It also addresses Williams’ impact on cold cases, in which original experts who performed autopsies and other forensic examinations and testing are no longer available for trial. The author provides practical suggestions to trial prosecutors who must balance limited resources against the need to secure convictions that will withstand confrontation challenges on appeal.
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Beyond Conviction Rates: Measuring Success in Sexual Assault Prosecutions
Prosecutorial effectiveness is commonly measured by conviction rates, largely because they are readily available. But, are conviction rates an accurate measure of success? Experienced prosecutors know they won’t win every case. In fact, some would argue that if you aren’t losing any cases, you aren’t trying the right ones. This Strategies Newsletter discusses promising sexual assault prosecution strategies as well as ways of measuring effectiveness in ways that do not rely solely upon conviction rates. The article also offers other, more meaningful performance measures, and describes how they can be used to more accurately measure and sustain effective prosecution practices.
Integrating a Trauma-Informed Response in Violence Against Women and Human Trafficking Prosecutions
This Strategies Newsletter describes a trauma-informed approach to responding to these crimes and discusses practices where such an approach has already been incorporated, highlighting areas where continued, additional integration is necessary. This article also identifies gaps in the application of the approach, specifically in reference to other co-occurring, violence against women and human trafficking crimes, and suggests strategies to more effectively integrate trauma-informed investigative and prosecutorial practices.
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Prosecuting Image Exploitation
Image exploitation involves the non-consensual creation, possession, or distribution of an image or images depicting victims engaged in consensual sexual activity or being sexually assaulted. As technology continues to evolve more quickly than the law, image exploitation crimes are being addressed by a patchwork of criminal laws. This Strategies Newsletter gives prosecutors insight on how to respond to this complex crime and to hold offenders accountable under imperfect or untested laws. The article explores the various forms of image exploitation and the types of statutes under which this abuse can be prosecuted.
Pennsylvania’s New Victim Behavior Expert Testimony Statute Upheld: Commonwealth v. Olivo
On November 18, 2015, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court decided Commonwealth v. Olivo, upholding, against state constitutional attack, the new Pennsylvania evidentiary statute permitting expert testimony to explain victim behavior in the prosecution of crimes of sexual violence. Previously, the courts of Pennsylvania had steadfastly resisted admission of such testimony, despite the widespread acceptance of such evidence by other courts across the country. This article reviews the facts of the case and discusses its implications for highlighting the important role of expert testimony in aiding juries to reach just verdicts, unhindered by myths and misconceptions about how “real” victims would behave. Pennsylvanias-New-Victim-Behavior-Expert-Testimony-Statute-Upheld-Commonwealth-v.-Olivo-SIB25
