This training bulletin series begins with a historical perspective and explores the role of victim advocates within the context of the criminal justice system. It then describes why some professionals are reluctant to integrate victim advocacy in their work and identifies strategies for overcoming that reluctance. The series concludes with an example of how advocates might address one particular challenge: When the law enforcement investigator feels like the facts “don’t add up.”

This training bulletin provides basic information about the brain and explores the impact of trauma on behavior and memory. This information is designed to help agencies make improvements in their interviewing practices with victims of sexual assault, as well as victims and witnesses of other types of violence. Many of these same principles also apply to other types of investigative interviews, such as those conducted by prosecutors, civil attorneys, campus Title IX investigators, and others.

The purpose of this document is to explain the need for Start by Believing and other victim-centered and trauma-informed approaches, based on the barriers sexual assault victims have long faced when they disclose to loved ones and when they report the crime or reach out for services. These problems have constituted large-scale failures, and therefore the efforts to fix them have also been on a national scale. We review the research documenting these failures, and the movement to reform our systems to become victim-centered and trauma-informed. Start by Believing is best understood within the historical and cultural context of these larger movements.

This training bulletin summarizes the best practice recommendations offered in the 8-hour Online Training Institute (OLTI) course entitled: Clearance Methods for Sexual Assault Cases. The OLTI module provides information for police officers, investigators, and supervisors on how to clear or otherwise close sexual assault cases. These case determinations can be complicated, yet many law enforcement personnel are provided little or no guidance in how to make them appropriately.

EVAWI offers a 3-part series of training bulletins on Crime Victims’ Rights, providing a basic introduction to the topic and outlining the requirements for informing victims about their rights, the process for asserting those rights, and procedures to follow when victims feel their rights have been violated during a criminal or civil proceeding.

This training bulletin addresses this critically important source of evidence in a sexual assault investigation. Many law enforcement agencies have failed to establish policies and procedures for obtaining comprehensive forensic examinations of sexual assault suspects, despite the potential for recovering probative evidence from the suspect’s body and clothing.

EVAWI offers a 4-part training bulletin series on Gender Bias in Sexual Assault Response and Investigation. It explores the phenomenon of gender bias, both explicit (conscious) and implicit (unconscious), and the resulting stereotypes and attitudes that can influence the professional response to, and investigation of, sexual assault. For example, discussion addresses the intersection of gender bias and victim selection at the time of the sexual assault, victim blaming after the assault, victim recantations, and the designation of false reports. Finally, the series concludes with recommendations for reducing the effect of gender bias in these cases.

EVAWI offers a training bulletin on how to provide a successful training for law enforcement on the topic of sexual assault response and investigation. Detailed guidance is provided, along with suggestions for identifying expert trainers in the field.

The 3-part training bulletin series, explores central concepts in the “neurobiology of trauma,” as it is understood by people working with sexual assault victims. Understanding essential scientific findings and avoiding any misinterpretation or misapplication can help professionals work more effectively with survivors.

The 3-part training bulletin series, explores central concepts in the “neurobiology of trauma,” as it is understood by people working with sexual assault victims. Understanding essential scientific findings and avoiding any misinterpretation or misapplication can help professionals work more effectively with survivors.

The 3-part training bulletin series, explores central concepts in the “neurobiology of trauma,” as it is understood by people working with sexual assault victims. Understanding essential scientific findings and avoiding any misinterpretation or misapplication can help professionals work more effectively with survivors.

Investigating Officers are one of the most important witnesses in a sexual assault trial. Impression management can make or break the way an investigator is perceived by the jury, which will determine the weight they will assign to their testimony. By proactively strategizing both content and context, investigators and prosecutors can present the evidence in a sexual assault case in a fashion that is straightforward, easy to follow, and effective.

This training bulletin describes the benefits of three types of federal immigration protections on improving victim, officer, and community safety: U and T Visas and Continued Presence (CP).

This training bulletin reviews the research literature on sexual assault disclosures and the responses survivors receive from both informal and formal support providers. It also examines public awareness campaigns designed to prevent sexual assault and improve responses to survivors. This includes outlining the rationale for EVAWI’s Start by Believing campaign and describing preliminary evidence for positive impact.

Sexual assault victims have long faced unwarranted skepticism. In this training bulletin, specific examples of this historical bias are described, along with key measures that have been taken to help ameliorate it. In particular, discussion focuses on the Start by Believing philosophy and the implications for victim and suspect interviews. The goal is to inform criminal justice professionals and others about what this philosophy does – and does not – say about how to approach the investigation of sexual assault cases, including interviews with victims, suspects, and witnesses.

In this training bulletin, we offer an introduction to this topic by explaining how to develop an investigative strategy in a sexual assault case where the victim has a disability. We begin by describing the legal elements that must be met in various types of sexual assault cases, regardless of whether or not the victim has a disability. For a more comprehensive discussion of this topic, please see our 20-hour Online Training Institute (OLTI) course entitled: Successfully Investigating Sexual Assault Against Victims with Disabilities.

This document was created to help law enforcement agencies work collaboratively with agency personnel, community partners, and legal counsel to develop their own agency-specific policy to address sexual misconduct committed by sworn and civilian personnel. It is provided in an accessible format that can be easily adapted by law enforcement agencies to create a new policy or build on an existing policy.

This training bulletin is the second in a 2-part series examining the question of whether routine notification of advocates violates the privacy protections outlined in HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996). In short, the answer is no: routine notification of victim advocates does not violate HIPAA, but there are issues worth considering.

This training bulletin is the first in a 2-part series examining the question of whether routine notification of advocates violates the privacy protections outlined in HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996). In short, the answer is no: routine notification of victim advocates does not violate HIPAA, but there are issues worth considering.

This training bulletin describes scenarios where victims summon the courage to report a sexual assault, only to be disbelieved, mistreated, and later charged (often erroneously) with false reporting or associated crimes. Some have even been charged with a felony crime of evidence tampering, for obtaining a medical forensic examination. Discussion focuses on how these scenarios unfold, highlighting factors that distinguish an interview conducted with a victim vs. a suspect in a criminal investigation, and documents how this can result in a coerced recantation or false confession. The conclusion addresses how these injustices can be prevented.

This training bulletin explores the critical decision of whether law enforcement investigators should record their victim interviews (either audio or video). This can be a controversial issue in some communities, so advantages and disadvantages are explored, to inform policy implementation.

This training bulletin provides guidance for courtesy reports taken by law enforcement to document a sexual assault committed in another jurisdiction. While it is written primarily for law enforcement, the information it is also valuable for other responding professionals to be informed about the options that are available.

This training bulletin is exerpted from our 32-hour OnLine Training Institute module, Laboratory Analysis of Biological Evidence and the Role of DNA in Sexual Assault Investigations. This comprehensive OLTI module explores the complex role of DNA in a sexual assault investigation, including various sources of DNA evidence and their potential impact on a sexual assault investigation. The module also includes case examples, providing the opportunity to apply what is learned in a variety of real-world scenarios.

Civil sexual harassment and criminal sexual assault differ in many ways, including the standards of proof, consequences for individual and organizational defendants, and relief for victims, among other factors. While these issues are complex, this training bulletin provides a concise summary to clarify key concepts and distinctions.

This training bulletin offers a very brief summary of the issues, primarily serving as a guide to other relevant resources.

Some law enforcement agencies have assigned female officers to sex crimes cases, assuming that victims will feel more secure and that women officers will “naturally” or intuitively respond better to these cases. But a better approach is to invest in quality training for all officers regardless of gender, and to set high expectations for anyone who interviews sexual assault victims.

In a training bulletin entitled, EVAWI addresses the question of whether or not evidence collected in association with a non-investigative report should be submitted to the laboratory for analysis. In short, the answer is “no.” The bulletin goes on to explain the rationale for this answer.

This training bulletin delves into questions that have been raised with the philosophy of Start by Believing, and other victim-centered and trauma-informed approaches. In particular, the discussion centers on one specific manner of attack: Defense cross-examination aimed at exposing the law enforcement investigation of a sexual assault as biased.

This training bulletin addresses the question of whether criminal justice professionals’ participation in Start by Believing compromises their ability to remain objective, potentially opening up police and prosecutors to attacks by defense counsel and/or losing cases at trial. While such attacks are possible, arguments are provided that can be used to explain the purpose of the campaign and defend the rationale for criminal justice participation.

This training bulletin addresses a question that is commonly asked by law enforcement investigators: Do I need to get a sworn statement from the victim at the conclusion of an interview? This training bulletin concludes that a sworn statement is not needed from victims or witnesses, because there is no clear advantage yet several critical disadvantages.