Lynn Hecht Schafran, director of the National Judicial Education Program (NJEP), which trains law enforcement officials to properly handle sexual assault cases, tells me that testing all rape kits is crucial, but it’s only a first step. “Even when a kit is tested, law enforcement often fails to forward the case for prosecution, and prosecutors often fail to go forward with the few cases referred to them,” she said.

Legal Momentum is pleased to announce that Lynn Hecht Schafran, Director of its National Judicial Education Program (NJEP), has contributed a chapter to the newly published compendium, Intimate Partner Sexual Violence: A Multidisciplinary Guide to Improving Services and Support for Survivors of Rape and Abuse, edited by Louise McOrmond-Plummer, Patricia Easteal, and Jennifer Y. Levy-Peck.

This interactive webinar explores the language of sexual assault: how we talk about and write about this crime.  We will discuss specific examples of the language we use and explore how to discuss sexual assault in a way that more accurately depicts the crime.

A two-day model curriculum that focuses on dealing fairly with sexual assault cases, especially nonstranger rapes. It invites judges to consider how this research on adult victim sexual assault relates to their responsibilities as leaders in the criminal justice system and the community.

This model curriculum for prosecutors, developed with the American Prosecutors Research Institute, provides prosecutors with tools for successful sex crimes prosecutions, especially nonstranger rapes.