The Forensic Nurse

Many people know that the color of your skin can have an effect on almost every aspect of your life. But what about being raped?

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing have released a new study that shows dramatic results when it comes to identifying injuries that may have occurred during a sexual assault depending on the color of the victims skin.

The Researchers conducted a study of 120 volunteers who were predominatly white or african-american and conducted examinations after they had engaged in consentual sex. They found that 68% of the white women had incurred at least one external injury (tearing, abrasions, or swelling), but only 43% of the darker skinned women showed the same levels of injury.

Because physical injury as a result of sexual assualt is usually the exception rather than the norm, being able to clearly show an injury often has a positive effect on people “believing” the victims story.

Being a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner or SANE, I have heard countless times from law enforcement officers, social workers, other nurses, and even the victims own family members that they dont believe the victims story.

Sexual Assualts usually happen one on one, in a private setting with no other witnesses, cameras, or other ways to try and help determine if the sex was consentual or not.

Because most of these cases come down to a he said / she said scenario the ability to produce accurate forensic evidence is critical. There may or may not be DNA evidence and if injuries are harder to detect on darker skinned victims that puts them at a distinct disadvantage both clinically and in the criminal justice system.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation  has published a document for the requirements needed to submit evidence collection kits for processing.

 http://www.ganet.org/gbi/labmanual.html 

Law enforcement agencies (local, state and federal)
Judicial systems
Medicolegal community
Other government laboratories
Regulatory and public service governmental agencies
Non-law enforcement security departments (for criminal cases only)

HOURS OF OPERATION

Laboratory hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Evidence receiving hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. , Monday through Friday .

The Crime Laboratory observes the State of Georgia official holiday schedule.

According to the National Crime Victimization Survey only 26% of those victims who where raped or victim of attempted rape where attacked by a person they did not know. That means that almost 3 out of 4 times the rapist / attempted rapist was either a friend, acquintance, date, family member, or other relative.