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Motion Expressing the Sense of Council of Allegheny County urging the United States Congress to enact Senate Bill 1700 and related House Bill 3214 which would enable training for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners to provide appropriate collection and preservation of evidence obtained in the evidentiary examination of sexual assault victims, and supporting the efforts of the Sexual Assault Response Team of Allegheny County (SARTAC) in their endeavor to address the needs of the sexual assault survivor.
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WHEREAS, the Sexual Assault Response Team of Allegheny County (SARTAC) members are highly trained healthcare professionals, rape crises advocates, and law enforcement personnel that are combining their efforts to address the emotional needs of sexual assault victims and to preserve the chain of evidence so that conviction rates increase; and
WHEREAS, one of the goals of SARTAC is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of prosecution and provide the ability of law enforcement officers to obtain evidence and successfully prosecute sexual assault cases; and
WHEREAS, the Pennsylvania State Legislature is currently considering Senate Bill 1700 and House Bill 3214 which would eliminate backlog of DNA samples collected from crime scene labs and convicted offenders, expand and improve the DNA testing capacity of Federal, State and local crime laboratories, improve the performance of counsel in these cases, and provide new training programs for the collection and use of DNA evidence; and
WHEREAS, passage of these bills would further the cause of SARTAC by enabling training for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners to provide appropriate collection and preservation of evidence.
NOW THEREFORE, IT IS MOVED, AND IT IS THE SENSE OF THE COUNCIL OF ALLEGHENY COUNTY, that this Body urges the United States Contress to enact Senate Bill 1700 and House Bill 3214 which would enable training for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners to provide appropriate collection and preservation of evidence obtained in the evidentiary examination of sexual assault victims.
BE IT FURTHER MOVED that this Council hereby supports the efforts of the Sexual Assault Response Team of Allegheny County (SARTAC) in their endeavor to address the needs of the sexual assault survivor.