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Resources for Law Enforcement

A Guide for North Carolina Law Enforcement Agencies to Address Unsubmitted Sexual Assault Kits

PURPOSE

This guide provides practical steps for Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) to comply with the intent of recently enacted legislation, G.S. 114-65 and The Survivor Act (G.S. 15A-266.5A). Two of the fundamental goals of the Survivor Act are: 1) testing of all future sexual assault evidence collection kits (SAECKs) reported to law enforcement and; 2) testing of previously unsubmitted SAECKs reported to law enforcement with a victim-centered and trauma-informed approach.  The purpose of this guide is to support LEAs addressing the above legislation so that outsourced testing of previously untested SAECKs commences as soon as possible. We will also have six regional trainings on best practices to help facilitate the implementation of this enacted legislation. See below for upcoming training dates.

Regional Training Videos

In 2019, NCDOJ drafted and championed the Survivor Act, which was signed into law in September 2019. The Survivor Act  requires local law enforcement agencies with unsubmitted sexual assault kits to take several actions to address their untested inventory:

  • Form a multidisciplinary team to review cases.
  • Implement a priority case review with the team.
  • Set aside previously “unfounded” kits to be reviewed.

John Somerindyke, retired Fayetteville Police Special Victims Unit Lt. Commander, overviews necessary next steps you and your teams need to take in a set of training videos, available below.

The North Carolina Department of Justice is available to provide additional guidance and training as you form multidisciplinary teams and review cases. If you’d like more information or assistance, please contact Troy Armstrong at tarmstrong@ncdoj.gov.




Steps to follow when you have unsubmitted SAECKs

    1. Enter all SAECKs into the North Carolina Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit Tracking System and Information Management System (STIMS)

    2. Certify inventory of unsubmitted SAECKs.
    3. Identify all SAECKs collected on or before January 1, 2018.

    4. For SAECKs collected on or before January 1, 2018:

      •  Convene a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to review all cases. The review team must be established as soon as practicable, but no later than December 18, 2019.
      • The MDT meets to survey the LEA’s entire inventory of pre-2018 SAECKs, then determine a priority order for testing. The review team’s work must be completed as soon as practicable, but no later than March 18, 2020.
      • If there are SAECKs in possession where the MDT determines the survivor did not consent to participate in the criminal justice process by reporting the crime to law enforcement (“unreported/annonymous”), send those SAECKs to Law Enforcement Support Service (LESS) Warehouse instead of sending them to the Crime Lab for testing.
      • Any SAECKs that the MDT determines are unfounded (after a MDT determines after a trained cold case review that by clear and convincing evidence a crime did not occur, see FAQ) or adjudicated (where a criminal prosecution has resulted in conviction, the convicted person’s DNA profile is in CODIS, and the convicted person does not seek DNA testing) shall not be submitted.
      • For any SAECKs that do not fall within the two points above please request approval by the State Crime Lab for testing of those immediately while your MDT does a cold case review of the remaining unsubmitted SAECKs.
    5. Send email to SAK@NCDOJ.gov for form and directions on approval by the State Crime Lab for testing of any SAECK collected before January 1, 2018.

    6. Upon receiving approval for testing from the State Crime Lab, submit SAECK to outsourcing lab.

      • The State Crime Lab/Vendor lab will test SAECKs on a first come first serve basis. Should vendor lab capacity become an issue the State Crime Lab will provide instructions to LEA’s to submit SAECKs based upon their MDT’s prioritization.

    7. For SAECKs completed between January 2, 2018 and June 30, 2019:

      • SAECKs should be submitted as soon as practicable to the State Crime Lab using the Forensic Advantage Portal (laboratory information management system) request for examination form.
      • However, any SAECKs where the survivor did not consent to participate in the criminal justice process by reporting the crime to law enforcement (“unreported SAECKs”) should be sent to the Law Enforcement Support Service (LESS) Warehouse.

    8. For SAECKs completed on or after July 1, 2019:

      • SAECKs should be submitted within 45 days after taking custody of the kit to the State Crime Lab using the Forensic Advantage Portal (laboratory information management system) request for examination form.
      • However, any SAECKs where the survivor did not consent to participate in the criminal justice process by reporting the crime to law enforcement (“unreported SAECKs”) should be sent to the Law Enforcement Support Service (LESS) Warehouse.

    9. When results are received from testing pre-2018 SAECKs:

      • Review to determine whether the case should be re-opened for investigation and prosecution. It is recommended as a best practice to utilize your local MDT team in reviewing returned case information and determining whether to proceed with the criminal justice process.
    10. Once test results are received, and with the support of the MDT, the victim notification process should begin.
      • NOTE: There are some situations where victim notification may not be appropriate or should be made earlier. (See forthcoming victim notification section.)
    11. Proceed with case investigation.

    12. A law enforcement agency that receives an actionable CODIS hit on a submitted DNA sample must provide an email to the State Crime lab or use the form here within 15 days of an arrest and within 15 days after a conviction resulting from a CODIS Hit.

      • For more information and suggestions once you have a CODIS hit please read the CODIS Hit Protocal Memo here.

Multidisciplinary Teams (MDT) FAQ’s

[hrf_faqs category=’SAECKs-LEO-Resource’]

Process for Submitting Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kits (SAECKs) FAQ’s

[hrf_faqs category=’SAECKs-LEO-Resource-2′]

Tools for Victim Notification

These victim notification tools have been created by the North Carolina Department of Justice Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI)  Working Group. This group is a multidisciplinary group of professionals –  law enforcement , victim advocates, sexual assault nurse examiners, district attorney, forensic specialists – committed to improving our state’s approach to sexual assault.

The Neurobiology of Trauma

 

Notifying Survivors of Sexual Assault Kit Results in North Carolina: Best Practices to Facilitate Victim Engagement and Healing

Training Description
In the next few years, the test results of thousands of sexual assault kits, which had been previously unsubmitted, will be received by local jurisdictions in NC. Upon receiving these results, it is the responsibility of local law enforcement, in partnership with victim advocates, to notify every survivor of the results. This communication can be life changing in several ways and it is vital that professionals are equipped to deliver this information in a trauma-informed and victim-centered way.

The training is sponsored by the North Carolina Department of Justice and will be led by Juliette Grimmett, Sexual Assault Victim Policy Specialist, and John Somerindyke, SAKI/Sexual Assault Law Enforcement Strategist.

Cold Case Training – CODIS Hit! Now What?

North Carolina’s sexual assault kit backlog has led to thousands of unsubmitted kits being tested. With many of the cases worthy of additional review, new investigations will be initiated. This two-session training will provide relevant information for law enforcement to best pursue these cold cases. Advocates, prosecutors, and SANEs are also encouraged to view as the content is relevant to their work. The training will include how to: interpret lab results and understand CODIS notification; utilize protocol to build a case; engage survivors from a trauma-informed, victim-centered perspective; and build resiliency for the work.

The training team is comprised of professionals from multiple disciplines: Amanda Overman, Forensic Scientist Supervisor; John Somerindyke, NC DOJ SAKI/Sexual Assault Law Enforcement Strategist; Kelly Taylor, Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner: and Juliette Grimmett, NC DOJ Sexual Assault Victim Policy Strategist.

Staying SANE: Understanding the Medical Forensic Exam and its Impact on Survivors

RECORDED January 27, 2021 from 11am – 1pm

Katherine Ariano, MSN, RN, CEN, SANE-A, SANE-P
SANE Program Manager
Duke University Health System

Lauren Schwartz, BS, RN, SANE-A
Director of Sexual Assault Services
Interact if Wake County

Two North Carolina SANEs will provide the “pearls” you need to know regarding SANE practice and the medicoforensic exam. Participants will be provided foundational concepts regarding the neurobiology of trauma, physical evaluation of injury, documentation,and easy-to-articulate medical terminology, anatomy, and physiology.