Cosby Trial 2017 - Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Allegations
In June 2017, comedian Bill Cosby will stand trial for aggravated indecent assault of a woman in his Montgomery County home more than a decade ago.
Identifying and Preventing Gender Bias in Law Enforcement Response to Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence
The guidance, through a series of detailed case examples, advises law enforcement agencies to incorporate the following principles into clear policies, comprehensive training and effective supervision protocols:
Issue 22: What's missing from the news on sexual violence? An analysis of coverage, 2011-2013
Sally Laskey
Tue, 09/01/2015
This publication explores how sexual violence is portrayed in the news and considers the implications of these portrayals for prevention advocates and journalists interested in discussing not just the details of sexual violence, but also how to end it. The findings lay the foundation for ongoing work to define more effective messages about sexual violence that can support prevention policies.
This work is part of a multi-year collaboration between the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and Berkeley Media Studies Group.
Publish Date
September 2015
Key Findings from ‘Sexual Violence Victimization and Associations with Health in a Community Sample of Hispanic Women’
Sexual violence can result in many health, economic, and social struggles in the lives of survivors. This resource highlights findings from a 2015 study on sexual violence against Latina women. Findings can help strengthen our prevention and response strategies with Latin@ communities. In
Spanish.
Publish Date
June 2015
Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) Functioning and Effectiveness: Findings from the National SART Project
This practitioner focused report of findings from a national research project on Sexual Assault Response Team functioning and effectiveness.
The full version of the technical research report to the National Institute of Justice is available online.
Scientific publications of the data in peer-reviewed journals with full methodological details are also available.
Publish Date
May 2015
Five Things about Sexual Assault Kits
This fact sheet from the National Insitute of Justice outlines what research has told us about sexual assault kits:
Sexual Assault Victims’ Experiences of Notification after a CODIS Hit
This report provides research results about Houston's victim notification process. In Houston, victim notification involves reestablishing contact with victims whose cases are reopened for investigation as a result of a match in the law enforcement database Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), from
victims’ recently tested sexual assault kits (SAKs).This action research assesses the implementation of the Complainant Notification and Hotline Protocols
Key Components of Building a Successful Victim Notification Protocol
This report includes research on creating victim notification protocols. Six major themes emerged from survey respondents regarding the process of developing and implementing the Protocols. They include: 1)Strategic planning, 2) Organizational support, 3) Active partnerships, 4) Resources, 5) Outreach, and 6)Victim-centered approach. Of the six themes, researchers identified the victim-centered approach as significant to the process of developing and implementing victim notification protocols.
How to Notify Victims about Sexual Assault Kit Evidence Insight and Recommendations from Victims and Professionals
This report describes research on victim and professional perspectives on the delivery of victim notification procedures, implementation of new victim notification processes, victim engagement within the criminal justice system, and recommendations for improvements.
Victims and professionals made five recommendations.
Detroit Sexual Assault Kit (SAK) Action Research Project (ARP), Final Report
A new report describes findings about unsubmitted sexual assault kits in Wayne County (Detroit), Michigan. A multidisciplinary team investigated the situation and found a number of effective and sustainable responses and ways to prevent the problem from recurring.
The team found several underlying “risk factors” that contributed to the large quantity of unsubmitted SAKs in Detroit, including: