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These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

The project sought to address the shortage of sexual assault forensic examiners (SAFE) by delivering and evaluating a comprehensive SAFE training program developed by the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN). To assess if the training was effective, researchers conducted an outcome evaluation using a mixed methods approach, including quantitative pre-post training and qualitative interviews with instructors and students. The evaluation had three main components: 1) to assess training completion, including the percentage of students who completed the training and the factors that contributed to their completion; 2) to ascertain whether students attained knowledge through pre-test/post-tests and the factors that contributed to knowledge attainment; and 3) to determine whether students retained their knowledge using a post-training exam approximately three months following the training, and whether the students incorporated the core concepts of the training into their SAFE practice.

The researchers divided the project into 3 studies. Study 1 examined how many students completed the training and what predicted training completion. Study 2a utilized a one-group pre-test post-test design where researchers assessed students' knowledge attainment for 12 online modules. Study 2b utilized a qualitative framework to understand the instructors' pedagogical approach to teaching clinical skills. In addition, researchers conducted qualitative interviews to examine the students' perceptions of the patient care and medical forensic exam skills gained from the clinical component in the SAFE training, and how the clinical training contributed to their skill development. Study 3a explored knowledge retention using an online post-training survey given to students three months following the training. Study 3b utilized the same qualitative framework as Study 2b. Only data for studies 1, 2a, and 3a are available with this collection. The data file has 198 cases and 675 variables. The qualitative interviews for Studies 2b and 3b are not available as part of this data collection at this time.

These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

The four primary goals of The Detroit Sexual Assault Kit Action Research Project (DSAK-ARP) were:

1. To assess the scope of the problem by conducting a complete census of all sexual assault kits (SAKs) in police property.
2. To identify the underlying factors that contributed to why Detroit had so many un-submitted SAKs.
3. To develop a plan for testing SAKs and to evaluate the efficacy of that plan.
4. To create a victim notification protocol and evaluate the efficacy of that protocol.

To conduct the census and investigate factors that contributed to untested SAKs, The study investigated police and other public records, interviewed public officials and employees and manually cataloged untested SAKs to conduct the census and gather information as to the decision making processes as to why the SAKs remained untested.

A random sample of 1,595 SAKs were tested as part of developing a SAK testing plan. Kits were divided into four testing groups to examine the utility of testing SAKs for stranger perpetrated sexual assaults, non-stranger perpetrated sexual assaults and sexual assaults believed to be beyond the statute of limitations. The final testing group split SAKs randomly into two addition sample sets as part of an experimental design to examine whether the testing method of selective degradation was a quicker and more cost efficient approach that offered satisfactory levels of accuracy when compared to standard DNA testing methods.

A two stage protocol was created to inform sexual assault victims that their SAKs had been tested, discuss options for participating with the investigation and prosecution process and connect the victim with community services.

After a sexual assault, victims are advised to have a medical forensic exam, including the collection of a sexual assault kit (SAK) to preserve forensic evidence of the crime. The SAK samples can be analyzed for DNA, which can help prosecute assailants and prevent future assaults. However, police do not routinely submit SAKs for forensic DNA testing, and large stockpiles of untested kits have been documented in over 41 jurisdictions. To address this growing national problem, many cities are now testing all of their older rape kits. Re-contacting survivors to inform them that their SAK had not been tested and now will be/has been tested is referred to as 'victim notification.' This study explored how victim notifications can support survivors' well-being and promote justice. Researchers conducted qualitative interviews with 32 sexual assault survivors in Detroit, MI. All participants had experienced a Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) Hit Re-Engagement Victim Notification, in which law enforcement personnel contacted survivors to inform them that their SAKs had been tested and the testing yielded a suspect DNA match in the FBI's national criminal database CODIS. All survivors agreed to re-engage with the criminal legal system and participate in the investigation and prosecution of these cases. Researchers also completed qualitative interviews with 12 community-based advocates about their experiences providing advocacy and support to these survivors throughout their notification and re-engagement experiences. They used semi-structured interviews to document:

1. Survivors' CODIS Hit Re-Engagement Victim Notification experiences;
2. Survivors' decision-making processes regarding re-engagement with the criminal legal system;
3. Survivors' re-engagement experiences with the criminal legal system and the extent to which their court experiences provided procedural, distributive, retributive, and/or restorative justice;
4. Survivors' advocacy experiences from victim notification through criminal legal system re-engagement.

These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

This study contains data from a feasibility trial which was undertaken to determine if a novel fluorescent dye to detect anogenital injury in non-white women was safe and effective in aiding the visualization of genital injuries in forensic examinations.

The study includes one SPSS data file: dye_data_archive.sav (44 cases; 14 variables).

These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they there received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except of the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompany readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collections and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

The qualitative Case Study data is not available as part of this data collection at this time.

The purpose of the study was to examine: (1) which entities pay for sexual assault medical forensic exams (MFEs) in state and local jurisdictions throughout the United States, and the policies and practices around determining payment; (2) what services are provided in the exam process and how exams are linked to counseling, advocacy, and other services; (3) whether exams are provided to victims regardless of their reporting or intention to report the assault to the criminal justice system; (4) how MFE kits are being stored for victims who choose not to participate in the criminal justice system process; and (5) whether Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) 2005 requirements are generally being met throughout the country.

Researchers conducted national surveys to obtain state-level information from state Services Training Officers Prosecutors (STOP) administrators (SSAs), victim compensation fund administrators, and state-level sexual assault coalitions. Surveys were distributed to potential respondents in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and United States territories that held these state-level positions. Researchers also distributed local-level surveys though an extensive listserv maintained by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC). Researchers also conducted case studies in 19 local jurisdictions across six states were selected for case studies.

Interviewees included

• the victim compensation fund administrator, state STOP administrator, state coalition director (or an appointed staff member) and sometimes crime lab or other state justice agency personnel, at the state level, and;
• law enforcement, prosecution, victim advocacy staff, and healthcare-based exam providers at the local level.

Finally, researchers concluded each local jurisdiction visit with a focus group with victims of sexual assault.

Data collection efforts included: a national survey of crime victim compensation fund administrators (Compensation Data, n = 26); a national survey of Services Training Officers Prosecutors (STOP) grant program administrators (SSA Data, n = 52); a national survey of state sexual assault coalitions (Coalitions Data, n = 47); and a survey of local community-based victim service providers (Local Provider Data, n = 489).

These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

This project had three goals. One, to provide a more detailed description of injury evidence and biological evidence in sexual assault cases, including their timing relative to arrests. A second goal was to examine the relationship of forensic evidence to arrests. A third goal was to examine injury evidence and biological evidence in certain types of cases in which it may have had greater impact. To achieve these goals, the researchers created analysis data files that merged data from the Massachusetts Provided Sexual Crime Report, forensic evidence data from the two crime laboratories serving the state and data on arrests and criminal charges from 140 different police agencies.

This study assessed and evaluated the programmatic implementation of alternate light source (ALS) use during the examination of injuries among adult victims of sexual violence and intimate partner violence (IPV) in a hospital setting. Researchers selected two forensic nursing departments, one with no experience using ALS in clinical practice (Site A) and one with 10+ years' experience (Site B), and conducted a thorough contextual analysis of each site to 1. develop an evidence-based ALS implementation program for forensic nursing departments and 2. evaluate the feasibility of this ALS implementation program.

Contextual analysis involved the collection of qualitative data through structured focus groups with nurses and quantitative data using 6-months of de-identified forensic medical records from patients who received a medical forensic exam for reported (or suspected) sexual assault or IPV. Nurses were recruited to the study upon completing an anonymous survey about their prior knowledge of ALS, qualifications or certifications related to ALS, workplace team dynamics, and organizational support for changes in practice using the Organizational Readiness to Change Assessment [ORCA]. This Nurse Survey Data and aforementioned Medical Record Data are currently available for secondary users, and qualitative interview transcripts will be made available in a future update.

Sexual Assault Response Teams (SARTs) are interventions that were created to coordinate efforts of the legal, medical, mental health systems, and rape crisis centers, in order to improve victims' help seeking experiences and legal outcomes. This study examined the relationship between SART structure and effectiveness by conducting a national scale study of SARTs and a smaller detailed network analysis of four SARTs.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether adult sexual assault cases in a Midwestern community were more likely to be investigated and prosecuted after the implementation of a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program, and to identify the 'critical ingredients' that contributed to that increase.

Part 1 (Study 1: Case Records Quantitative Data) used a quasi-experimental, nonequivalent comparison group cohort design to compare criminal justice systems outcomes for adult sexual assault cases treated in county hospitals five years prior to the implementation of the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program (January 1994 to August 1999) (the comparison group, n=156) to cases treated in the focal SANE program during its first seven years of operation (September 1999 to December 2005) (the intervention group, n=137). Variables include focus on case outcome, law enforcement agency that handled the case, DNA findings, and county-level factors, including prosecutor elections and the emergence of the focal SANE program.

Part 2 (Study 2: Case Characteristics Quantitative Data) used the adult sexual assault cases from the Study 1 intervention group (post-SANE) (n=137) to examine whether victim characteristics, assault characteristics, and the presence and type of medical forensic evidence predicted case progression outcomes.

Part 3 (Study 3: Police and Prosecutors Interview Qualitative Data) used in-depth interviews in April and May of 2007 with law enforcement supervisors (n=9) and prosecutors (n=6) in the focal county responsible for the prosecution of adult sexual assault crimes to explore if and how the SANEs affect the way in which police and prosecutors approach such cases. The interviews focused on four main topics: (1) whether they perceived a change in investigations and prosecution of adult sexual assault cases in post-SANE, (2) their assessment of the quality and utility of the forensic evidence provided by SANEs, (3) their perceptions regarding whether inter-agency training has improved the quality of police investigations and reports post-SANE, and (4) their perceptions regarding if and how the SANE program increased communication and collaboration among legal and medical personnel, and if such changes have influenced law enforcement investigational practices or prosecutor charging decisions.

Part 4 (Study 4: Police Reports Quantitative Data) examined police reports written before and after the implementation of the SANE program to determine whether there had been substantive changes in ways sexual assaults cases were investigated since the emergence of the SANE program. Variables include whether the police had referred the case to the prosecutor, indicators of SANE involvement, and indicators of law enforcement effort.

Part 5 (Study 5: Survivor Interview Qualitative Data) focused on understanding how victims characterized the care they received at the focal SANE program as well as their expriences with the criminal justices system. Using prospective sampling and community-based retrospective purposive sampling, twenty adult sexual assault vicitims were identified and interviewed between January 2006 and May 2007. Interviews covered four topics: (1) the rape itself and initial disclosures, (2) victims' experiences with SANE program staff including nurses and victim support advocates, (3) the specific role forensic evidence played in victims' decisions to participate in prosecution, and (4) victims' experiences with law enforcement, prosecutors, and judicial proceedings, and if/how the forensic nurses and advocates influenced those interactions.

Part 6 (Study 6: Forensic Nurse Interview Qualitative Data) examined forensic nurses' perspectives on how the SANE program could affect survivor participation with prosecution indirectly and how the interactions between SANEs and law enforcement could be contributing to increased investigational effort. Between July and August of 2008, six Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs) were interviewed. The interviews explored three topics: (1) the nurses' philosophy on victim reporting and participating in prosecution, (2) their perceptions regarding how patient care may or may not affect victim participation in the criminal justice system, and (3) their perception of how the SANE programs influence the work of law enforcement investigational practices.The interviews explored three topics: (1) the nurses' philosophy on victim reporting and participating in prosecution, (2) their perceptions regarding how patient care may or may not affect victim participation in the criminal justice system, and (3) their perception of how the SANE programs influence the work of law enforcement investigational practices.

These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.

The general and original hypothesis to be explored in this study was that multi-slice computed tomography (CT) imaging of decedents in whom elder abuse was suspected or reported might enhance the work of the medical examiner by providing novel information not readily available at conventional autopsy and/or by ruling out the need for complete conventional autopsy in cases in which abuse findings were negative, thereby providing: time and cost efficiencies, additional evidentiary support in the form of state-of-the-art images, and, in some cases, compassionate support for families whose religions or cultures required more rapid and/or noninvasive techniques.

No quantitative or qualitative data are available with this study. The data are comprised of the images taken from the autopsies of 57 decedents.