Transcripts For CSPAN Mariska Hargitay Testifies On Combating Sexual Assault 20170619

Good morning, welcome to the first roundtable for the Bipartisan Task force to end Sexual Violence. I would like to welcome you all to our Exceptional Panel of witnesses and the members of the task force who have joined us here this morning. Thank you all for being here. This promises to be an insightful conversation on a number of issues affecting people across our country. We announced the formation of the task force to end Sexual Violence. Also, assault awareness month. We are educating ourselves and our peers on the challenges our nation faces and the ways we, as representatives, can help combat Sexual Violence in its many forms. My colleagues have their own reasons for being here. For me, i want to be involved , because i saw this problem firsthand in my 25 years as a prosecuting attorney. A Sexual Assault kit is a tool used to collect evidence from a survivor after an assault. These examinations are completed by a medical professional, ideally a specifically trained Sexual Assault nurse examiner, known as a s. A. N. E. Nurse. Our nation faces a backlog, potentially hundreds of thousands of kits deep. This is due to factors such as variance in testing procedures, outdated equipment, lack of guidelines,clear budget restrictions, and generally, a large caseload. Victims are still waiting for justice. That is why this issue is a priority for the task force. We understand without trained nurses who can collect the necessary evidence to go after perpetrators. We have a very special panel of witnesses. I am pleased to welcome ms. Mariska hargitay, she is on law and order, s. V. U. As i told her this morning, our a reason that my daughter completed her first year of her law degree from usc. She is an advocate for victims of a Sexual Assault. As an actress and advocate, ms. Hartigay is an inspiration and force of change. She plays detective benson on law and order, special victims unit. Replaying her character, she was awakened to the weight of shame, fear, darkness and isolation victims suffer. She decided to be part of a multiple education awareness campaigns around these issues for many organizations. She is made Public Service announcements to end the rape kit backlog, bring justice to survivors, prevent child abuse, and engage men to prevent violence and abuse. She has filmed many Public Service announcements with nbc and got milk. Time toowned her various organizations lending her voice and hope to their programs. She is a voice to other organizations in hopes of raising awareness and much needed Financial Support for their programs. She is committed to ending violence and abuse. She spends as much time offscreen dealing with these issues as she did in her role as detective benson. We are pleased you are here to speak with us and look forward to hearing from you. I would like to welcome our next witness, victim advocate, from waco, texas. She is a loving mother, wife, author, speaker, radio host and Sexual Assault survivor. She is a Response Team member for a writ Crisis Center rape , and acenter spokesperson for the Dallas Police program. She founded the empowering ministry for victims of sexual abuse support and survivor initiatives. Ms. Masters, we are honored to have you here, and we look forward to your testimony. Our next witness, mr. Nathan james for Congressional Research service. Focusing on a variety of issues, including Law Enforcement, corrections, and forensic sciences. His recent work is focused on commerce and appropriations for the department of justice, the use of need assessment, promoting policing reforms, and analysis of reported increases of Violent Crime in cities across the United States and Law Enforcement militarization. We are glad to have your expert knowledge, and we look forward to working with you. I am pleased to announce the next two witnesses, my good friend, mike omalley, and our chief prosecutor, thank you both for traveling all the way from cleveland. In november of 2016, mike omalley was elected to prosecuting attorney to cuyahoga valley. I know he knows it well having been the chief running the program and made other prosecutors look good as he was doing so. His office prosecutes nearly 12,000 defendants and handles nearly 7,000 juvenile complaints annually. Prior to taking office, he served as First Assistant safety director and a Cleveland City councilman. He began his career as a probation officer while attending law school at night. Rick bell, his super sidekick, has been an assistant prosecutor for 27 years. Hes currently the special investigations divisions chief overseeing the following task forces, cold case homicides, crimes against children and sexual trafficking and Sexual Assault kit task force. Mr. Bell has supervised every unit of the Criminal Division including the major crime units and Community Based protection units. Were glad both of you could be here today and look forward to your testimony. Last but not least, dr. Jennifer markowitz from the International Association of forensic nurses. Shes a forensic nursing consultant who specializes in issues relating to Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence and strangulation, including medical forensic examination and professional education and curriculum development. In addition to teaching at workshops around the world, she provides expert testimony, case consultation, and technical assistance, develops training material, resources and publications and is a forensic nurse examiner since 1995. Dr. Markowitz regularly served as faculty consultant for the jag, u. S. Army, the marine corps and coast guard. In 2004, she was named the distinguished fellow the International Association of forensic nurses. In 2012, she served as their president. Thank you very much for being here today. We look forward to your testimony. Ill now hand it over to my fellow cochairs for their Opening Statement. Ms. Kuster. Ms. Kuster thank you, mr. Joyce. I want to thank everyone for being with us for the kickoff of our Bipartisan Task force to end Sexual Violence. I am delighted to have everyone with us. Mariska hargitay, thank you for your leadership on this Issue Advocacy and for speaking out. I am delighted to have Michael Omalley and richard bell with us. We have a lot to learn. Hopefully practices to share. Jennifer markowitz and nathan james, thank you for the work you do. David said that his reason for being here my reason for being here is that over four years ago, as an undergraduate in college, i was assaulted. A few years after that, i was working as staff on capitol hill. Jackie and i were working in offices next to each other. I was, what we now know to be sexually harassed in the workplace, we did not have a name for it back then. A few months after that, i was attacked walking home on capitol hill. Luckily, i was able to get away. The reason i bring this up is that, not about my story, but because it is so common. I did not tell anyone any of these stories for 40 years. I did not tell my husband, my sons, my own family. The reason i now understand is, because i thought it was my fault. I thought it was in the wrong place, i had done the wrong thing. It did not make any sense to me in my 20s why it would be my fault. It has taken me 40 years to understand it certainly was not , and i really appreciate living now. If our generation had been more courageous and spoken up but now i am dedicating my life and im delighted to be here with my colleagues in a bipartisan way. Men and women coming together, our staff has done an extraordinary job, young men and young women. The time is now. Mariska said this morning, we have a moment and can really change the world. Our intention is to bring together members of congress and legislation in initiatives to a ddress Sexual Violence in areas we intend to tackle, k12 education, college safety, military, online harassment, and improved Data Collection and Law Enforcement training. We are starting today with the rape kit backlog. We understand that this is really at the core. It is a demonstration that as a society, we are not caring about victims, survivors of Sexual Assault, men and women. After experiencing the trauma of Sexual Assault and an intensely personal Sexual Assault forensic exam, no survivor should experience the pain and distress of having their Sexual Assault kit backlogged. There is no other crime we would do this, not process the evidence. The failure to test these kits allow rapists to remain on the streets and put more people at risk. We know this to be true now from the evidence of communities that have gone back to test. We will hear from mariska and others about what we have learned about serial predators. Im encouraged by previous bipartisan efforts, the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, to retest backlogs, engage with survivors, and bring Sexual Assault predators to justice. Congress must continue to build on the progress we have made reducing the Sexual Assault kit backlog. Funding is important, and we will be prepared to fund that to discuss that with you. I am eager to explore the important topics of access to Sexual Assault nurse examiners, known as s. A. N. E. Nurses. They provide compassionate support to survivors for their shortterm and longterm recovery. Rural communities, like in my district of new hampshire, many survivors do not have access to s. A. N. E. Nurses. I would like to explore ways to make that available. We want to ensure everyone has access to a s. A. N. E. Nurse. I think my colleagues on both i think my colleagues on both i thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and i look forward to this discussion. I yield back. Thank you, representative kuster. Mr. Meehan i want to thank my colleagues for being part of this Bipartisan Task force. For identifying this gambit of important issues we want to collectively address. I cannot think of anything more important for us to kick it off then with this important issue that has this distinguished panel has before us today. I thank you each for your presence here today. I thank you for your dedication to this issue through your professional work. As a former prosecutor, we have had the ability or opportunity to engage with the victims on a Broad Spectrum of issues. In my own sense, there was nothing more dehumanizing than someone who has had to go through the crime of being sexually assaulted, in and of itself. It is a different type of victim than any other we deal with, because i think as representative kuster and others have discussed, no one considers themselves at fault for being. Obbed on the street thinking of themselves as somehow a participant. Yet, we so often see victims beginning to question what their role in relationship is to this. How we respond is every bit as important to the victim as the mechanics of this process that we are going through. I think we also have seen progress in this area. Certainly from my time as a prosecutor about a decade ago, to where we are today. We also know there is a long way to go. I want to thank Mariska Hargitay and your organization, the heart which has looked at the issue of rape kit backlogs, something you have experienced by virtue of your professional work. Those who have open themselves to you, what we find is that once somebody has a place to go, these stories are overwhelming in the form of not just the emotion, but the search for a place to help give me closure, but not even closure. I think the issue is, give me back control of this thing that was stolen from me. I thank you for allowing us to go on this journey together. I will note, and i hope everyone here will Pay Attention to, a film that was put together by ms. Hartigay and was released last night in evidence of what is identified already as remarkable response. I wish you luck as you continue to use that as the voice of some victims who have experienced this, and where we need to go to continue. Jennifer markowitz, i want to thank you for your work in this space. One of the important places we have made progress is with the Sexual Assault nurse examiners. That firstoes to experience post trauma. How somebody is engaged, and the importance of us, not only being able to collect the evidence, but the humiliating process of what could be a five to six hour procedure. We close with the idea that, having had the procedure, now you have been doubly victimized. What happens with that evidence . After going through all of that, we leave it sitting on a shelf. We have become part of the process. Michaeli want to thank for your dedication and your office. You are demonstrating there is interest on the part of Law Enforcement to do this right. Most offices want to do what is right for the victims. Some things are just issues of resources. Sometimes it is not an appreciation. How tell us what we we can do this better. I want to thank this remarkably experienced panel that will bring broad perspective. I thank my colleagues were colleagues for putting this issue front and center. It cannot be more timely. Ms. Hartigay, i hope you will allow us to continue to press forward, not just from this hearing, but collectively. Thank you, i yield back. Representative speier. Ms. Speier mr. Chairman, thank you. After this particularly traumatic week for all of us, it is soothing to me personally that we have a Bipartisan Group of members here focused on a very important issue. I want to thank my colleagues for being here, being part of this very important effort. I want to especially thank ms. Masters, a victims survivor who is here. It is very hard to have to recall that experience, over and over again. Ms. Hartigay, if it were not for you, Joyful Foundation would not be here. I am evidence would not have been filmed. We are deeply grateful for your longterm commitment to this issue. I look around this room, and there are mostly women here. We know the statistics that one in four women are probably going to be sexually assaulted in their lives. If we look at your faces, we know that some of you have. I wish we would have as many men in this room as we have women in this room, because this issue will not be fully addressed until we have a complete understanding by both sexes of what really goes on. Over 30 years ago, i was then a county supervisor and one of the deputy das came in to meet with me and said, we are having a terrible time getting convictions on rape cases. I said, tell me what the problem is. One problem was that there was not a comprehensive investigation done, and an actual evaluation of the victim when they came into the emergency room. There was an issue around the chain of custody of the evidence. So, that started my effort to try and address the issue. The conviction rate went way up. When there is a commitment by people to do the right thing, we can do the right thing. There is no clearer demonstration of our countrys lack of regard for Sexual Assault survivors, then ignoring the backlog of Sexual Assault cases. We would never, ever let the dna in a murder case sit on a shelf. And yet, it is commonplace to let the dna of Sexual Assault victims sit on the shelf. The backlog of kits, the bureaucratic discrimination against survivors, and the lack of sufficient Sexual Assault teams and Sexual Assault nurse examiners is an injustice committed against women because they are women. And we must refuse to let this injustice stand. I yield back. Thank you. I now recognize ms. Hartigay for her Opening Statement. Ms. Hartigay good morning, thank you for your heartfelt comments and passions for this work. I am Mariska Hargitay, and im speaking to you today as the founder of the foundation. The joyful heart foundation. I want to thank you for making this the topic of your first briefing. By elevating this issue, youre sending a powerful message to survivals of Sexual Assault, that their cases matter. They matter. Youre demonstrating to lawenforcement and prosecutors that we must work to do everything we can still hold offenders accountable and keep our communities safe. You have my full statement on record, so i would like to use my time today to give more perspective on how far we have, have come in addressing the untested rape kit backlog. In 2014, congress created the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative to provide jurisdictions with critically needed resources to test kits, great multidisciplinary teams to investigate and prosecute related cases, and address the need for victim notification and reengagement with the criminal Justice System. The impact cannot be overstated. We have heard from Law Enforcement and prosecutors, that the requirement to create a team to undertake systemic reform, bringing communities together like never before. These focused resources are helping lawenforcement get serial criminals off the street, easing personnel, facilitating community engagement, and keeping neighborhoods safer. We have heard the same feedback from victim advocates. It is helping agencies already stretched thin to implement reforms and catalyze positive changes. I first testified in congress about the rape kit backlog in may, 2010. The National Landscape today is very different. We had no idea how many untested rape kits were sitting on shelves. The best guess was an estimated 400,000. But now, that number is disputed. The reality is that, because most jurisdictions do not have systems for tracking or counting rape kits, we cannot be sure of the total number. However, through Public Record request, investigative journalism, grassroots advocacy, and legislative reform, we are beginning to understand the scope of the backlog nationwide. Since 2010, more than 200,000 untested rape kits have been accounted for. 21 states and washington, d. C. Have passed laws requiring audits of untested rape kits. When i testified in 2010, there kit reformte rape laws on the books. Today, that has changed. Now, 71 rape kit reform bills have been passed in some states. Joyful heart launched a National Campaign to pass comprehensive rape kit reform legislation in all 50 states by 2020. Since 2010, 30 states have enacted some sort of rape kit reform. Last week, texas became the first state in the nation to enact all of six pillars of our National Best practices. We are also seeing a change in Law Enforcement understanding of the impact of trauma on survivors. Jurisdictions now understand this important perspective and are implementing trauma informed and victim centered practices that seek to avoid revictimization and further harm. Although we have seen progress, there is more work to be done. Today, only eight states have laws requiring testing in both current or backlogged kits. That means, in most states, the decision to send kits for testing is left up to the discretion of an individual. We must reverse that trend to ensure every kit connected to a reported case is tested. The numbers do not lie. Testing all kits solves crime and saves lives. The survivors legislative district should not determine the outcome of their case or their right to information. On behalf of all survivors across the country, i thank you for your attention on this issue , and i look forward to continuing this dialogue. I know that you join me in commending the jurisdictions taking responsibility for reform. Together, we are committed to raising awareness on those who have not. Thank you. Thank you very much ms. Hargitay. Ms. Masters . Ms. Masters good morning. I am lavinia masters, and i am a survivor of rape, and i am an advocate now. I always like to start out that my victimization was three parts. The first part was the actual violent rape where my perpetrator, Kevin Lynn Turner, i love sharing his name, because i used to be afraid to even speak about him. Now the shame is on him, its no wonder on me. So, Kevin Lynn Turner decided he would come into my home one night when i was asleep on the couch and rape me violently at knife point. I was only 13yearsold at the time. It was hard, because, as a child, youre supposed to feel safe in your home. Especially when your family is there. But Kevin Lynn Turner decided he was going to attack me, put a knife to my throat. He could have taken my life, and so that was the first part of my victimization. My second part was when the police came out and i had to go to park Memorial Hospital and do the exam. It was tedious. To me, they were insensitive. Was it your boyfriend . Did you let him in the window . The questions they asked me, they helped make it feel like it was my fault, the things that happened that night. The third part of my victimization was to find out 20 something years later that my rape kit was sitting on the shelf. Me as a child thinking police were looking high and low for the guy that raped me, surely you had some concern for a child that was raped in the middle of the night . Surely, you do not discriminate against my skin color, didnt discriminate against me as a female, didnt discriminate against my age or gender . Surely, you would look for the rapist that tried to almost take the life of a child. I was disappointed with that. Here i am, over 30 something years, and at that point in my life i said three strikes, youre out, no more. I will not stand for this or allow this to happen to another victim in my nation, my land, where i live and im supposed to feel safe. Where i give my life and my everything to be a part of this country. So, i stand as an advocate today. I stand letting you know that i did not believe in monsters as a child. Kevin lynn turner made me believe in monsters. He made me believe in werewolves, made me believe these vicious monsters will attack you. Once they attack victims, we take on these hideous formations of ourselves. We become dark, we get in these places and nobody understands. You begin to look at us differently. I thought i was a straight a student over the summer when he raped me in 1985. When i went back to school i was different. Something was wrong with me. I didnt understand it myself or why my grades began to go down. I didnt understand why i look at people differently, or why i any man that crossed my path. I didnt have the services or counseling or anyone to reach out and say its going to be ok, we are here for you, were going to get through. I had to try to make it happen all on my own. My parents didnt understand. Im thankful today to be here. I feel the passion that you have on this panel to say, no more. I feel the passion that you feel for us and say, we did not forget about you. Because i felt i was forgotten about that night. I felt no one cared what happened to me that night. I felt alone, desolated, terrified. I began to take on the hideous form of a monster myself. In the world, i wore a mask throughout life, pretending i was something i was not, wanting to be free, live my life to the fullest. But i couldnt. Im thankful once again for the rape kit backlog reform efforts, and the Justice System and the past sisters i have worked with, being an advocate because i am in a better place now. I am excited about the work you are doing. I am here for all victims. Just like with hurricane katrina, i said im going back, i will rescue and be a voice. I will let them know that we are survivors. I am empowered today because of things like this, the Bipartisan Task force. We decided were going to stick together and put Everything Else aside because your life matters to me. My life matters. I have one in mask for too long. Im free and im here, and im going to use my voice and i want to smile and im happy about everything i do, everything i encounter. My life matters, every victims life matters. Thats why i am here today, and i am excited to be a part of this. I thank you for your passion today. [applause] thank you, ms. Masters. And i think i speak on behalf of all of us, we appreciate you being here with us today sharing your story and apologize for what took place to you 27 years ago. That is why we are here today. I would be remiss if i did not introduce other members of our panel. Representative Tom Ohalloran and representative Debbie Wasserman schultz who joins us here today. Now, to mr. James for his testimony, thank you. Your Opening Statement. Mr. James congressman joyce, congressman kuster, congressman speier, and congressman meehan. Better . Yes . You forwant to thank inviting me today to discuss the department of justices efforts to reduce rape kit backlogs and increase the number of Sexual Assault nurse examiners. Before i begin, i should note that National Guidelines on objectivity, nonpartisanship, require me to confine my remarks to the technical, professional and nonevocative aspects of the matter under consideration and thats under under consideration at this Bipartisan Task force. I can discuss doj programs related to rape kit backlogs and i can respond to questions from task force members. I am limited to addressing issues within my field of expertise, and i cannot answer questions from the public. The doj has several programs specifically targeted at reducing rape kit backlogs and expanding the number of s. A. N. E. s. Sexual assault initiatives for inventory in testing rape kits, applying designated personnel to work investigating new leads, supporting victims, developing evidence tracking systems, training Law Enforcement on Sexual Assault investigations. The Sexual Assault forensic evidence inventory tracking and reporting Program Provides funds to inventory existing rape kits, track them as they move forward provideisposition, and the public with data on how they are being processed. However, grants under this program cannot be used for testing rape kits. In 2010, congress appropriated funding for a Sexual Assault Forensic Exam Program so that we can use for the purpose specified in section 304 of the justice for all act which authorized grants training, technical assistance, education and equipment related to the collection and analysis of dna samples by medical personnel and those treating victims of Sexual Assault, which include s. A. N. E. s. Doj has several programs where funds can be used for using for reducing backlogs or hiring s. A. N. E. s, but these are not the sole purposes of the program. For example, the capacity enhanced backlog reduction Program Provides funding for analyzing dna samples and increasing the capacity of public laboratories. Funds under this program can be used to analyze biological evidence collected as part of a Sexual Assault kit and committed submitted to a crime lab for analysis. Useddition, funds can be for other things such as identify and conduct inventories of rape kit backlogs and develop policy for responding to those backlogs and training medical personnel in the collection and preservation of evidence of evidence in Sexual Assault cases. Finally, doj has some programs which provides funding for a variety of criminal justice purposes. While funds under these programs might be used for reducing rape kits or increasing s. A. N. E. s, these are not the specified purposes of the program. Again, thank you for your invitation to brief the task force this morning. I look forward to questions you might have. Thank you, mr. James. Let me assure you, this is not about politics. This is about justice. My representative Wasserman Schultz and i say we are appropriators. We are not here as democrats or republicans. Were appropriators, here to do the right thing so i appreciate your limitations but feel free to respond as you hear questions. We are just prosecutors or former prosecutors or prosecutor wannabes, so we all appreciate and its amazing how it cuts through party lines and when we talk about things like heroin and Sexual Assault. It does not stop at any one countys borders. Thats why i appreciate our next witness, prosecutor omalley and the work that his office has done in fighting funds within in finding funds within his own department to make sure that we try to process those backlogs. I recognize prosecutor omalley for his Opening Statements. Mr. Omalley thank you, esteemed members of this committee. In Cuyahoga County i will adlib. We are ahead of the curve , because of initial grants by the department of justice. In 2007 and 2009, the department of justice gave Cuyahoga County money to begin investigating cold case homicides. It was also geared towards dna evidence. We used that money to look at homicides with sexual motivation. As a result of that, we ended up solving 17 homicides and 14 rapes. In 2009 in the city of cleveland, we had a horrendous crime committed by an individual by the name of anthony soul over the course of a number of years. He brutally raped and murdered 11 women in the city of cleveland. As a result of that crime, and the deficiencies it demonstrated through the criminal Justice System, the focus was shined upon the issue of rape kits within our county. Within Cuyahoga County alone, there was 5000 untested rape kits sitting on the shelves of Law Enforcement. A number thats inexcusable and really understandable. Throughout the state of ohio, we had 14,000 rape kits that had been sitting on shelves. But because we had those initial department of justice grants and because we had investigators hired who were predominantly retired Police Officers and because we were geared up to begin to handle this, all efforts were put into an issue by attorney general mike dewine who started a Program Threat the Program Throughout the state of ohio to test all rape kits within our state. He provided funding at a statewide level. Cuyahoga county continued to receive grants, so that we can hire investigators. We had 5000 kits, but we had 6700 Sexual Assault incidences that we needed to investigate. Currently, of those 6700 cases which is almost unimaginable, the victims out there who have not yet received justice within our county, we have processed 3700 investigations. Again, we have a task force now that started from a simple department of justice grant in 2007, that includes representatives from the state Attorney Generals Office, local police agencies, our county sheriffs department. We have representatives from the cleveland rape Crisis Center embedded within our task force to assist victims and together we have a collaborative effort to investigate these brutal crimes. Seek justice for the victims and close out these cases on behalf of the residents we all serve. While this was going on, representatives from the state of ohio assisted us in this endeavor by passing state laws, one that moved back the statute of limitations to 25 years. It also mandated that if anybody arrested for felony offense within the state of ohio would immediately receive a swab into the system to assist us in solving these crimes. Again, what we have accomplished within our own county could not have been accomplished without the assistance of the federal government. As many of the representatives or former prosecutors, Law Enforcement is tasked with handling the current issues, let alone trying to go back 20 years in dealing with issues from 20 years ago, but we must do it, on behalf of all these victims. And. And so, while we move forward, we are doing the best we can in our own county and through the state of ohio. We continue to need assistance from the federal government in our efforts to bring justice to 14,000 cases from our state. I want to thank you for your time. I want to thank you for your leadership in this position and our panelists. In particular, our victims out there like ms. Masters who found the courage to come forward and represent all victims out there who need our help. Again, i just want to thank the panel today. Thank you for being here. Id like to recognize at this time the distinguished lady from michigan, debbie dingell, who has joined us here as a member of our panel as well. Moving on, dr. Markowitz, if you would like to give a couple comments. Dr. Markowitz good morning, my name is jennifer markowitz, a forensic nurse examiner and past president of the International Association of forensic nurses and the current chair of the Governor Affairs committee. I want to thank chairman kuster, joyce, and members of the Bipartisan Task force for the opportunity to speak to you today about the work of Sexual Assault nurse examiners and Sexual Assault forensic examiners and the challenges patients face when gaining access to our services. Ifn is a professional organization of nurses who provide Specialized Health care for patients affected by violence and trauma. We establish and provide standards of practice and education for forensic nurses. Our members have the knowledge and expertise to decrease short and longterm Health Consequences of violence, improve patient recovery, and lower healthcare costs. Forensic nurses integrate the evidentiary needs for patients into our overall medical evaluation and treatment in a seamless process. We provide medical testimony in court when necessary and consult with legal authorities, as well as other members of the multidisciplinary team. Sexual assault nurse examiners , or s. A. N. E. s, are the most recognized within medical forensic nursing. Studies reveal medical forensic examinations conducted by s. A. N. E. s result in more positive experiences in the Health Care System and are significantly associated with increased prosecution rates for these particular crimes. My testimony today will highlight three Priority Areas for s. A. N. E. s. We will continue to strive to provide Quality Health care to victims across the country. One, expanding access to s. A. N. E. Services. Number two, enhancing access to s. A. N. E. Services. Number three, broadening public understanding of s. A. N. E. Services. In regards to expanding access, as clinicians, we understand the importance of comprehensive Sexual Assault forensic examinations conducted by specialists and readily accessible to patients across the United States. Although there is recognition that s. A. N. E. s are the Optimal Health care provider after Sexual Assault, only 70 of hospital7 of emergency departments, including those designated level one and Level Two Trauma Centers have s. A. N. E. s available. Level one and Level Two Trauma Centers manage every aspect of critical injuries, including prompt availability of care by a variety of specialties. The only designated aspect of care missing from the requirements for level one and Level Two Trauma Centers is the Sexual Assault specialists. At a minimum, processes should be in place to ensure adult and pediatrics provide prompt access to s. A. N. E. s, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, regardless of the age of the patient. This can be accomplished through onsite services, contracts with s. A. N. E. Communitybased programs to respond to patients around the clock who have been sexually assaulted, or formalized transfer agreements with area programs either hospitals or communitybased to ensure Rapid Response to these patients. In doing so, a majority of americans would have access to s. A. N. E. Services, expanding availability in urban and rural areas. The second point, regarding enhancing s. A. N. E. Sustainability through education , is of significant concern for us. Sustainability requires that we put money into both expanding s. A. N. E. Programs, as well as moving into new patient populations, healthcare, systems and organizations. While there may be Agency Support for starting new programs or grant dollars available for initial education, funding is also needed for continuing education. Competency and currency of practice are critical for s. A. N. E. s. As with other health care specialties, continuing education, access to new technologies, and familiarity with state of science ensures patients are provided highquality care. Continuing education also benefits the criminal Justice System with access to s. A. N. E. s able to testify to the fullest extent of their clinical experience. Funding on education must be prioritized. Too often it is left to the individual s. A. N. E. s to cover the cost. That brings me to my next point. We improve the quality of evidence collected during the forensic exam, of particular benefit to Sexual Assault patients. However, the Sexual Assault kit is only one aspect of the patient encounter. It is vital s. A. N. E. s recognize as much for their ability to provide confidence of healthcare as our ability to provide detailed evidence collection and maintain chain of custody. Researchers identified myriad, acute, Health Issues that occur at higher rates in Sexual Assault patients than their nonassaulted counterparts. S. A. N. E. s have the ability to attend to the unique Health Care Needs of patients, connect patients with followup resources and referrals for longterm medical issues, and collaborate with professionals within the medical community and with ancillary disciplines to target individualized care of Sexual Assault patients across ossy are lifespan acr their lifespan. Research is greatly needed to understand how Patient Outcomes differ with specialized Sexual Assault care when that is provided. While it is become clear patients that receive s. A. N. E. Care have improved outcomes, there is no research to provide data related to healthcare outcomes. I hope youll give consideration to what i shared. I appreciate your time and are willing to answer any questions from the task force, thank you so much. Thank you very much, dr. Markowitz. Lastly, mr. Bell. You have an Opening Statement youd like to say . Mr. Bell yes. Thank you very much, distinguished members of the subcommittee for the opportunity to testify about our work to end Sexual Violence. As prosecutor omalley highlighted, in ohio, we learned we have 14,000 backlogged rape kits from a period of time between 1993 and 2009. Over 6700 were from our area, the cleveland, ohio and Cuyahoga County area. Compounding the problem is that the statute of limitations in ohio bearing down on us as prosecutors. We knew that, unless we reviewed each one of these cases, we were going to run out of time on our watch. So, we took it very seriously, and we had sometimes one day, sometimes two hours, before the grand jury time would run out and we would lose the case. In order to make the most of our resources, we understand we had to form a task force with several agencies detailing personnel to one physical location which is very important. Our belief was that using a multidisciplinary approach in at in that one location would yield the best results. Because of the volume of the investigations, we needed to prioritize our cases, as well. We tackled the oldest ones first. We were able to identify many defendants. Some we were not able to identify, but we were able to indict them as john doe defendants using dna profiles as identification. Now, we are concentrating on the serial sex offenders who are out on the street or will be out of prison within one year. To give you an idea of that magnitude as well as the danger to our community, of the 6700 rape kits being investigated, testing and review of their criminal histories reveal there are at least 670 serial sex offenders. The essence of the multidisciplinary approach is to share ideas among task force members, as well as sharing ideas with other jurisdictions. Our office began an annual best practices summit that continues to this day. The first summit was in cleveland in 2014, memphis, 15, detroit, 2016, and the next 2015, detroit, 2016, and the next one will be held in portland, 2017. These four cities have very similar taskforces. The taskforces have the same name to encourage uniformity, the taskforces keeps statistics to measure ourselves. We work with Rti International to provide data to make sense of our progress. Earlier this year, western reserve university partnered to hold another collaborative meeting of the taskforces, houston, portland, dallas, detroit, memphis, washington state, and kansas state, and others, to discuss what statistics would and should be collected across the taskforces. We have established four pillars of best practices. First, test all kits. When you test all kits, you develop leads that solve the identity of the stranger rape cases. 56 of our serial rapists have been identified as both an acquaintance rape as well as a stranger rapist on a different case. Second, swab all felony arrestees. The more arrestees swabbed, the more robust the system becomes and the more victims cases you will solve. Third, investigate all positive and negative rape kit reports you receive from the laboratory. We solved rape cases even on cases where there is little dna. Or even ones where there is no dna, because the Police Reports have revealed their secondary pieces of evidence that you might be able to present to the lab for testing. Lastly, investigate with a victimcentered approach. It is a very Important Pillar of our best practices. We use victim advocates to notify and stay in contact with our victims. We follow victim notification protocols reviewed by our cleveland rape Crisis Center as well as the joyful heart foundation. Obviously, testing the kits is the first step. But after testing is when the very detailed work begins. You dont just indict the case once the dna is discovered. Although the funding has been terrific, in order to make sure the kids get tested, additional funding is needed for investigators advocates and prosecutors to bring those cases together. Ohio has made a significant investment as well. The Attorney Generals Office, mike dewine, to test all those kits had to put forth a 4 Million Investment in robotics and personnel. Our office has invested 1 million per year for the effort and the Attorney Generals Office has also invested an additional half 1 million for personnel. Investedy counsel has 679 thousand dollars a year, and they have said they will do so for the next four years that we believe we need to complete the project. Received 22016, we million grants from the department of justice to investigate and prosecute. With the grants, we hired 20 investigators and for victim prosecutors. What was emphasize previously outlined. Our funding began in 2006 from the doj. On june the doj funding several separate occasions over the past 10 years have helped us with various partner contributions. Without it, we could not do the work that we do. The money the money and we ask you to be invested. That foundation is there and we will be able to stable the work we do. We are investigating all of the successes of the rape kit cases. 3,2267 completed unsolved cases, and that would never have have been solved or prosecuted without this effort. We have indicted 595 separate and unique defendants. Week. 0 will be next we convicted 264 defendants. Our conviction rate is 92. 6 and , on average, each defendant has received a sentence of longer than 10 years. The impact of Sexual Violence extends beyond the victims using the National Institute of Health Studies we have calculated the harm caused by these rapists since the time they should have been prosecuted and put into prison. Each case had an average costs associated with it murder, burglary, and breaking and entering. They have been convicted of since the rape they convicted of. Our first 93 defendants have caused 440 million in economic harm to the state of harm. State of ohio