Commission on the Standardization of the Collection of Evidence in Sexual Assault Investigations
Minutes of the Meeting of September 18, 2017
Office of the Chief State's Attorney
Rocky Hill, Connecticut
Attendance: Maureen Platt, Chair, Joy Reho, Candida Fusco, Patti LaMonica, Denise Covington, Marielle Daniels, Michelle Noehren, Brenda Hans, John Leventhal, M.D., Olivia DeFilippo, Monica Polzella, Laura Cordes
The meeting was called to order at 3p.m.
The minutes of the prior meeting were reviewed and approved.
The issue of whether forensic interviews can be paid for out of the fund established to finance the sexual assault kit payments was raised. It was agreed that under our current law, it is probably not possible to authorize a payment for a forensic interview of a child witness or nonsexual assault victim. Payment would have to come from either the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) or the police department involved.
Denise Covington gave the Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) report. In fiscal year 2016-2017, the SAFE program was activated 256 times and responded to 211 cases giving it a response rate of 82.4 percent. The next SAFE course will begin on September 25. The new CT-100 and CT-400 kits have been ordered. There are currently 27 SAFE professionals working in the program.
A discussion was held regarding the proposed revisions to the Technical Guidelines. Several minor revisions were suggested and agreed upon. A motion was made by Laura Cordes, and seconded by John Leventhal, M.D., to approval the revisions to the Technical Guidelines and give Denise Covington the authority to make any further minor changes as necessary to complete the project in a timely fashion. This motion was unanimously approved by the Commission.
Under new business, Laura Cordes explained that the sexual assault training videos have been updated. She further suggested that the Connecticut Coalition to End Sexual Violence has additional funds to publish the Technical Guidelines on a website for easier access by health care professionals and others. It was also suggested by the group that the Division of Criminal Justice should look into establishing a website to publish all matters relating to the Evidence Commission activities.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:58 p.m.
The next meeting will be on Monday, December 11, 2017, at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, 300 Corporate Place, Rocky Hill from 3-4:30 p.m.