31 May, 2016

To Catch a Rapist - The New York Times

To Catch a Rapist - The New York Times: "These cases are rarely reported immediately because children often feel confused, afraid or to blame, and because the perpetrators are often family members or family friends. Even many adult victims don’t report a sexual assault before the 72-to-120-hour cutoff after which hospitals will no longer conduct a forensic medical exam. Delayed reporting is the norm in sexual-assault cases, not the exception. In New Haven, the vast majority of the detectives’ cases are reported days, weeks, months, even years after the fact. Not only is there bias against a victim who waits to report an assault, but the delay also means that there is rarely any physical evidence — neither forensic evidence taken from the bodies of the victims or suspects nor crime scenes to investigate.

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