Module 2
Overview of the Criminal Justice System

Gathering Evidence Other than Victim/Witness Statements

Other items that may constitute relevant evidence in a sexual assault investigation include:

  • photographs of the crime scene
  • photographs of injuries sustained by the victim
  • clothing worn by the victim or left behind by the offender. These items may contain valuable DNA evidence or may show signs of force (such as rips)
  • social media communications, such as messages between the perpetrator and the victim or posts by the perpetrator which could establish an element of the crime or defeat the purported defense. For example, photos from a party posted by the defendant showing that the victim was unconscious may help prove that the victim was incapable of giving consent
  • a diary kept by the victim detailing the sexual assault or thought-process and suffering in the aftermath of the assault
  • medical records related to treatment for injuries sustained during the assault
  • “controlled” or “pretext” communications between the victim and the perpetrator. These are communications—conducted at the direction of law enforcement—in which the victim initiates conversation with the perpetrator (by phone, social media, email, etc.) to aid in the investigation. Law enforcement often records these communications, the goal of which is to elicit an incriminating admission or confession from the perpetrator. An important note: it is not advisable for a victim to undertake these pretext communications without direction from law enforcement.
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