NCJ Number
189420
Date Published
May 2001
Length
152 pages
Annotation
This supplement for a New Jersey conference on the development and operations of Sexual Assault Response Teams (SART) provides resources for improving services to victims of sexual assault.
Abstract
The supplement first reviews the development of SART's in New Jersey. SART's exist in 9 counties, and there are programs in varying stages of development in the remaining 12 counties. SART's are composed of rape care advocates, specially trained law enforcement officers, and sexual assault forensic examiners. SART's are designed to provide an immediate, coordinated, multidisciplinary response to complaints of sexual assault. Sexual assault victims are supported throughout the investigation and forensic-examination process by trained professionals who focus on the delivery of victim-centered services. The supplement presents summary profiles and full texts of model statewide sexual assault standards for the implementation and operation of SART's; the New Jersey prosecutor's manual for establishing and operating a SANE (sexual assault nurse examiner) program; and an article on forensic nursing. Also described is the New Jersey colposcope initiative, which is designed to enhance sensitive, effective, victim-centered health care and evidence collection for sexual assault victims. The colposcope is an optical instrument used for many years by physicians to identify and diagnose cervical disease and other disorders of the female genitalia.