18 U.S.C. § 3772 - Sexual assault survivors' rights

• Cite as: 18 U.S.C. § 3772

(a) RIGHTS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT SURVIVORS.-In addition to those rights provided in section 3771, a sexual assault survivor has the following rights:

(1) The right not to be prevented from, or charged for, receiving a medical forensic examination.

(2) The right to-

(A) subject to paragraph (3), have a sexual assault evidence collection kit or its probative contents preserved, without charge, for the duration of the maximum applicable statute of limitations or 20 years, whichever is shorter;

(B) be informed of any result of a sexual assault evidence collection kit, including a DNA profile match, toxicology report, or other information collected as part of a medical forensic examination, if such disclosure would not impede or compromise an ongoing investigation;

(C) be informed in writing of policies governing the collection and preservation of a sexual assault evidence collection kit; and

(D) be informed of the status and location of a sexual assault evidence collection kit.

(3) The right to-

(A) upon written request, receive written notification from the appropriate official with custody not later than 60 days before the date of the intended destruction or disposal; and

(B) upon written request, be granted further preservation of the kit or its probative contents.

(4) The right to be informed of the rights under this subsection.

(b) APPLICABILITY.-Subsections (b) through (f) of section 3771 shall apply to sexual assault survivors.

(c) DEFINITION OF SEXUAL ASSAULT.-In this section, the term "sexual assault" means any nonconsensual sexual act proscribed by Federal, tribal, or State law, including when the victim lacks capacity to consent.

(d) FUNDING.-This section, other than paragraphs (2)(A) and (3)(B) of subsection (a), shall be carried out using funds made available under section 1402(d)(3)(A)(i) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 ( 42 U.S.C. 10601(d)(3)(A)(i) ).¹ No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section.