CCASA staff support and co-chair, along with staff from the Office for Victims Programs in the Division of Criminal Justice, the Forensic Compliance Team (FCT), which is a statewide, multidisciplinary group that works to ensure victim-centered implementation of provisions regarding medical forensic exams for victims of sexual assault* in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) 2005 and 2013 reauthorizations and Colorado’s forensic compliance laws as well as address related sexual assault policy and practice issues. For more information about the FCT, contact Brie Franklin, Executive Director, at brie@ccasa.org or 303-839-0029.
- In 2013, the FCT published “Forensic Compliance in Colorado: An Examination of System Response to Sexual Assault“
- In 2017, the FCT published “Sexual Assault Colorado Reporting Options: Guidelines for Response“
- In 2020, the FCT launched the You Have the Right public awareness campaign to educate survivors and the general public about sexual assault reporting options.
*These provisions read as follows:
Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit a State, Indian tribal government, or territorial government to require a victim of sexual assault to participate in the criminal justice system or cooperate with law enforcement in order to be provided with a medical forensic exam, reimbursement for charges incurred on account of such an exam or both [42 U.S.C.A § 3796gg-4(d)(1)(2005)].
There are two key requirements of forensic compliance. Specifically, VAWA states that sexual assault victims must be provided with access to a medical forensic exam:
(1) Free of charge, and
(2) Without requiring them to cooperate with law enforcement or participate in the criminal justice system.
VAWA 2013 retains these key provisions from VAWA 2005, and it clarifies that victims cannot be required to pay any out-of-pocket costs to obtain a medical forensic exam. Under VAWA 2005, jurisdictions were allowed to bill victims for the cost of the exam as long as they were fully reimbursed. However, this option was eliminated in VAWA 2013.
All US states, territories, and tribal governments must certify compliance with these VAWA provisions to retain their eligibility for STOP grant funds.
Source: https://evawintl.org/best_practice_faqs/forensic-compliance-definition/