Examining the "72-hour rule" for Yielding Biological Evidence from Sexual Assault Kits

• In Event: Research on the Impact of DNA Testing of Sexual Assualt Kits

Abstract

Many hospital emergency rooms will not conduct a forensic medical examination following sexual assault more than 72 hours following the assault, believing that the probability of obtaining forensic evidence is too small to justify the procedure. But some experts have challenged the scientific basis for this rule, and research is finding counter-evidence to challenge it. Some clinicians have described factors that suggest that an examination is indicated even after 72 hours. This study used data from a Massachusetts medical examination database and from crime laboratory records to examine this rule in a statewide sample of 343 sexual assault cases in which a medical examination was conducted and a police report was made. Although only 13 examinations occurred more than 72 hours after the assault, 9 of the 13 (69%) yielded biological evidence. We will examine case factors differentiating later from earlier examinations and explore how these case factors might relate to biological evidence. The presentation will end with a discussion of opportunities of using case data to test received wisdom in a professional field.
 

Authors

• Theodore P. Cross, University of Illinois

• Thaddeus Schmitt, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• Megan Alderden, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority