ASTM_E_1843_-_96_2010.pdf

Designation:E184396(Reapproved 2010)Standard Guide forSexual Assault Investigation,Examination,and EvidenceCollection1This standard is issued under the fixed designation E1843;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon()indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.INTRODUCTIONReports of sexual assaults have increased steadily in the United States over the past twenty fiveyears.Although the reporting rate of these assaults has tripled nationally during this period,researchstatistics indicate that sexual assault remains as one of the most under-reported types of crime.Thesestudies also indicate that the ratio of persons committing sexual assault to the general population isfairly constant.The rise,therefore,in the reporting rate of sexual assault reflects improvements madein U.S.society concerning how such reports are investigated and processed in the courts.Theseimprovements have occurred in the areas of the victims movement and victim advocacy initiatives bythe criminal justice system,improved police education and training,the womens movement andgender equality consciousness in society,sexual assault education in the schools and the public sectorgenerally,and the evaluation of clinical forensic nursing.The articulation of these standards carriesforward the spirit of these improvements so as to serve the cause of justice in society.Although reports of child sexual abuse have also increased markedly in recent years,these reportsare even more difficult to substantiate than adult reports.Many children are too young to realize thatcertain kinds of physical contact by others are inappropriate,and those that do may not be able toarticulate their feelings,or are dependent upon the abuser for care,or both.When children do reportsexual abuse to a third party,it may be dismissed as fantasy or falsehood.Children may be threatenedor convinced that something terrible will happen to them or their families if they report the abuse,orthat they were in some way responsible for it.Traditionally,the successful prosecution of both adult and child sexual assault cases has beendifficult.The victim often is the only witness to the crime.Consequently,the documentation ofphysical injuries and the collection of trace evidence may provide important corroborating evidence.Meticulous attention to detail in the collection and preservation of evidence combined with anempathetic concern for the victim,and a respect for the legal and human rights of the suspect isrequired.Within the community,this process is known to be facilitated by using trained forensicexaminers in the setting of a multidisciplinary team.1.Scope1.1 This guide covers the basic components for the devel-opment of a sexual assault investigation protocol,with specificattention to the examination of assault scenes,victims andsuspects of sexual assault,the recovery of testimonial,physical,and behavioral evidence,and the preservation andcustody of physical evidence.1.2 This guide outlines procedures requiring the experienceof experts in a diversity of fields.A multidisciplinary teamapproach to sexual assault investigation is necessary and is thecurrent standard of care.This team should include membersskilled in the following disciplines:law enforcement,criminalistics,victim advocacy,and clinical,forensic practice.2.Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:2E620 Practice for Reporting Opinions of Scientific or Tech-nical Experts1This guide is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E30 on ForensicSciences and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E30.01 on Criminalistics.Current edition approved March 1,2010.Published May 2010.Originallyapproved in 1996.Last previous edition approved in 2003 as E1843 96(2003).DOI:10.1520/E1843-96R10.2For referenced ASTM standards,visit the ASTM website,www.astm.org,orcontact ASTM Customer Service at serviceastm.org.For Annual Book of ASTMStandards volume information,refer to the standardss Document Summary page onthe ASTM website.Copyright ASTM International,100 Barr Harbor Drive,PO Box C700,West Conshohocken,PA 19428-2959.United States1 E1020 Practice for Reporting Incidents that May InvolveCriminal or Civil LitigationE1188 Practice for Collection and Preservation of Informa-tion and Physical Items by a Technical InvestigatorE1459 Guide for Physical Evidence Labeling and RelatedDocumentationE1492 Practice for Receiving,Documenting,Storing,andRetrieving Evidence in a Forensic Science Laboratory3.General Protocol3.1 General InformationInvestigators undertaking sexualassault investigations must realize that these assaults representsignificantly underreported serious crimes and that this under-reporting is due,in significant measure,to the lack ofunderstanding,empathy,and professional competence of in-vestigative personnel tasked with investi