Sexual Assault Case Attrition: An Examination of the Factors Related to the Filing of Criminal Charges

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

Abstract

The last several decades have seen considerable improvement in the criminal justice system's response to sexual violence. Despite these changes, sexual assault case attrition remains a serious issue particularly at the initial stages of processing. Many contend that no decision is more critical than the decision by the prosecutor's office to file criminal charges. The current paper uses data from a prosecutor's office to examine the factors associated with the filing of criminal charges. Results show that legal factors (e.g., injury and whether the suspect had an arrest record) and extralegal factors (e.g., the victim-assailant relationship and the use of physical resistance by the victim) influence whether criminal charges are filed. DNA match to the suspect (usually achieved by matching DNA from evidence kits with DNA from suspect samples) appears to be both a cause and an effect of criminal charging. The paper concludes with a discussion of how the findings can be utilized to inform policy.

Authors

• Laura Siller, Northeastern University

• Theodore P. Cross, University of Illinois

• Megan Alderden, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority