April 2013

How Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Protects Victims – Renewed by
Congress in March 2013, note the following key parts of VAWA:

•  Training programs for law enforcement officers have helped improve their understanding of the crime, their ability to effectively interview victims,and the quality of police investigations. Similar training for district attorneys has helped improve their ability to prosecute rape, while training for judges has improved the environment for victims whose cases go to trial.

• Programs encourage the reporting of sexual assault to police. Currently, only 46% of sexual assaults are reported to police. By increasing reportingof sexual assault, more survivors could receive justice for the crimes committed against them.
• The Sexual Assault Service Program funds victim services and preventionprograms at local sexual assault service providers. It is the only dedicated funding stream for local agencies.
• For the first time, VAWA now includes the Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence

Reporting (SAFER) Act, which will eliminate the backlog of untested DNA evidence from unsolved rape cases and take thousands of rapists off the streets.