SAFER Act Would Create DNA Registry, Aid Law Enforcement and Victims

The Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Registry (SAFER) Act, introduced in Congress, “will lead to testing more DNA evidence and taking more rapists off our streets, says RAINN president Scott Berkowitz. He says RAINN considers it a vital next step in the nation’s efforts to analyze DNA evidence from all open rape cases.

The SAFER Act, introduced by Reps. Caroline Maloney (D-NY) and Ted Poe (R-TX), enhances the Debbie Smith Act to create a national registry of forensic evidence from sexual assault cases. The registry will be online and accessible to the public, shedding light on the untested DNA evidence in thousands of rape cases.

Law enforcement will log up-to-date information on each rape case into SAFER, noting whether the DNA evidence has been analyzed or is awaiting testing. To protect privacy, SAFER will not include any a victim’s name or other identifying information. Victims will receive a confidential code that allows them to check on the testing status of evidence from their own case.
According to Rep. Maloney, who authored the original Debbie Smith Act, “With this legislation, we can obtain the data needed to accurately track whether a backlog exists and how bad it is —and bring the power of web-based transparency to local law enforcement. Citizens and rape victims will be able to see with a few clicks the full contours of local DNA processing status. It’s ‘Government 2.0’ applied to this most heinous of crimes: rape.”



http://www.rainn.org/news-room/news/safer-act-introduced-in-congress