Forensic DNA analysis has provided swift justice in countless crimes and has proven particularly useful in identifying rapists. Because forensic DNA evidence is especially useful for the investigation of sexual crimes, the development of the new technology has undoubtedly facilitated the prosecution of sexual assaults. Less noticed, however, has been the possibility that unanticipated consequences of the increasing availability of forensic DNA technology may, at the same time, inadvertently discourage the prosecution of sexual assaults, especially in cases of non-stranger/acquaintance rape. The increased likelihood of convictions in rape cases where identity is the issue may shift prosecutorial attention, resources and even enthusiasm towards the prosecution of stranger rather than non-stranger/ acquaintance rape cases. This could potentially retard or even reverse the progress made by the feminist and anti-rape movements of the 1960s and 70s to recognize and prosecute non-stranger/acquaintance rape.
This is a study of the social impact of technology on the prosecution of sexual assault cases. A longitudinal analysis of alleged cases of adult rape brought before a U.S. County Attorney's Office over a 14-year time period will help to determine if there are unintended consequences of technology on a crime whose definition is historically malleable and which is, in part, dependent on social stereotypes and commonly held notions of gender appropriate behavior. In addition, in-depth interviews with individuals involved in the legal system's response to rape claims, both in the participant county and the surrounding area will complement the quantitative analysis of rape prosecutions. The researchers seek to measure the impact of technological innovation on the ongoing social construction of the social problem of non-stranger/acquaintance rape.
This examination of non-stranger sexual assault prosecutions over time highlights the prosecutorial decision-making surrounding the disposition of these claims. Due to the sensitive nature of sexual assault cases, research has largely been conducted using qualitative methods. Any existing quantitative sexual assault research has involved surveys or content analyses of cases bound for trial. This sample provided by a U.S. County Attorney’s Office (henceforth referred to as Justice County) consists of all alleged cases of adult sexual assault over a 14 year time period, and is the only one of its kind. The study of 361 alleged cases of adult sexual assault in Justice County revealed that 98% of the cases involved a non-stranger victim-offender relationship. Of the 355 non-stanger cases, the prosecution accepted only 27%. A further breakdown of the non-stranger cases into six categories differentiating the degree of intimacy between the victim and offender revealed that the nature of the relationship mattered to the case disposition, with acceptance occurring less frequently as the familiarity between the victim and offender prior to the assault increased. The cases with non-stranger relationships involving bare minimum contact prior to the attack (i.e. victim and offender present at the same party/ bar), and therefore most similar to a stranger-type scenario, were more likely to be accepted over those where the victim and offender were in a short-term relationship and may have had some type of sexual interaction prior to the contested incident. Meanwhile the cases involving short-term, victim-offender relationships occurred with the most frequency.The exception to this pattern was found with non-stranger cases involving long-term, victim-offender relationships (i.e. live-in boyfriend, inter-familial). The prosecution accepted 50% of the cases involving intimate, long-term relationships and 41.2% of cases involving an inter-familial victim-offender relationship, as compared to 23.7% of all other non-stranger relationships combined. Analyses of the DNA workload revealed that requests for DNA analysis to the state’s federally funded crime lab, to which Justice County submits requests for DNA analysis, doubled over the course of seven years. The steady increase in the DNA workload coincides with the federal funds awarded to the home state of Justice County for the enhancement of the State’s DNA capabilities. With resources having increased in one area of law enforcement, the resources to move forward with non-stranger rape cases that tend to require more rigorous investigation should avail themselves to an increase in case acceptance. Though the proportion of non-stranger case acceptance is unchanged over 14 years, the federal funds directed at improving the State lab’s DNA capabilities and the growing backlog more than tripled. The second phase of the project included interviews with persons directly involved in responding to sexual assault claims in Justice County and the surrounding area. The results revealed that the image of the victim matters greatly to the prosecution’s decision to move forward with a case. The victim is expected to have demonstrated behavior that meets the juries’ image of an innocent victim. These responses coincided with the quantitative findings that showed case acceptance to steadily decrease as the victim-offender relationship becomes more intimate, and the victim’s behavior surrounding the event in question plays a greater role. In addition, the study participants’ discussion of the prevalence of DNA analysis to rape cases also speaks to this issue of the victim’s image and behavior. When DNA evidence is key to a claimant’s case, the prosecutors stated that juries would likely show a greater willingness to convict. However, all respondents stated that identity is rarely the issue in a sexual assault case. The broader implications for this study suggest that the victim’s first contact with the legal system should not be with a first-responder who has limited experience in working sexual assault cases. The best-case scenario would involve the victim of a sexual assault first encountering a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) at the hospital, whose specialized training makes them better prepared to respond to the initial needs of the victim. Resources to enable hospitals to staff SANEs will ensure that the victim is immediately met with a professional trained in handling sexual assault cases, and not required to wait for an intrusive examination that can take anywhere from two to four hours. The criminal justice system needs to front load resources for all sexual assault victims. This enables the victim’s continued cooperation throughout what can often be a lengthy process. These services are especially necessary when the act of reporting results in a lack of monetary or childcare support due to the long-term relationship between the victim and offender. In such circumstances the victim will more likely proceed with the investigation if additional hardships can be prevented through greater outside assistance. This initial support provided victims by the criminal justice system could potentially encourage the reporting of the crime by alleviating concerns about not being believed.
