Admissibility in court feels like the barest minimum of requirements here, to say nothing of the other services like counceling the linked thread discusses.
Yes, but having the option to admit this in court, including of course the choice to NOT admit it, to stop all proceedings, in the justice system and/or court seems equally the barest minimum of requirements. Including the option to deny anything happened everywhere. To avoid and/or dealing with counceling (or God forbid, CPS. There's plenty of children and adults who are terrified of dealing with any official at all because of their experiences with CPS. They, frankly, have good reason). That's the requirement that I think this private rape kit does better than the official one.
A judge determines what's admissible in a court of law. That's why your texts, social media posts, etc are all admissable.
The companies in this space are not trying to fool anyone into not going into the hospital. They are trying to help serve the 80%+ of survivors that never go to the official system.
There is no way that these would work in the long term without chain of custody, even if some judge would approve the admission of these it would definitely lead and an appeal and there is no way the higher courts would uphold the tests, keep in mind that at home DNA kits are not even admissible in custody / paternal hearings if they are employed in a state that only require the consent of a single parent then at best they can only be used as a justification for a court ordered test.
At home rape kits is a recipe for disaster for rape victims and the legal system.
It appears that if they are persevering despite putting countless rape victims at risk, they might have bad intentions.
From the same article you posted:
> Defense attorneys worry that allowing victims to conduct their own rape exams could result in cross-contamination and raise issues of reasonable doubt. “If you want to frame someone, it’s easy to get their DNA onto a swab where you do a sex assault kit, and say, ‘Oh, look, here’s their DNA,’” criminal defense attorney Mark Reichel told the AP. Since they first hit the market last year, there has been a push to ban DIY kits for reasons like this.
Also from the article you posted:
> Northern California has issued a temporary order allowing rape kits to be collected by the survivor, at home, while a nurse walks them through the process via video call
This is with a cop parked outside and a nurse over a zoom call. These kits are being used as a last resort in the middle of a pandemic. Chain of custody looks to be a problem and it is mentioned in the article.
Rather than a “rape kit start up,” which is a really awful phrase to use, why don’t we process all of the backlog rape kits that are sitting in the evidence lockers across the country, first.
Because the startup is basically just a few people who believe in the idea, whereas the backlog of rape kids is a problem distributed over the entire country through the institutional neglect of thousands of people?
If the two people who founded this startup were going to take your advice - how would they do it? Just send a check to crime labs all over the country and hope they process the kit? Start a letter writing campaign?
Immoral to give survivors options other than the largely unused hospital and law enforcement processes? Any sexual assault counselor should know that survivors most often do not want to be re-traumatized through being physically manipulated by another individual. If COVID-19 has shown us anything, it is that remote options ARE feasible. Self-use kits were used in Monterey and Marin counties in California out of necessity (https://www.ksbw.com/article/monterey-county-das-office-allo...), and necessity breeds widely used innovation. It would make sense to die on this hill if the current system was survivor-centric. But it is not. You’re putting far too much faith in a system built to reflect and serve the interests of law enforcement and hospitals, not the needs of survivors. Moreover, further research will show you that the startup explicitly encourages survivors to visit a hospital or contact law enforcement if at all possible. Not only is your information outdated, but it is also misleading. Try keeping your personal value statements (and your baseless interpretation of criminal law?) out of the conversation. Ask sexual assault survivors what they would like to see instead.
It's interesting to see the only comments defending this startup are from newly created accounts.
The article you shared appears to conflict with what this startup is offering.
> It's being called a "temporary protocol" that so far, has only been used once on April 5. Nassoura said the process starts by the victim calling law enforcement and then, "The officer goes to the victim's residence, places it (the sexual assault test) on the front door step, waits in the vehicle. The victim then goes to the front door gets the sample and they begin a zoom video call." That zoom video call involves a forensic nurse, the detective and a victim advocate. Once the victim's statement is taken by the officer, the nurse is the only one that remains on the call. The victim then self-collects the sample under the nurse's guidance and direction.
And to your point:
> Moreover, further research will show you that the startup explicitly encourages survivors to visit a hospital or contact law enforcement if at all possible.
The problem is, this startup's business model specifically relies on victims not visiting the hospital.
> Ask sexual assault survivors what they would like to see instead.
They would probably want their evidence to be admitted in court, rather than raise reasonable doubt.
This is a tweet thread covering the risks of a tech startup that has raised money in the effort to disrupt rape kits, most specifically having previously called itself MeToo Kits and rebranding to Leda Health. The tweet thread explains that the DIY rape kits are likely doing more harm than good, partially because these rape kits don't have the documentation of who owned the kid when and where that a rape kit at a hospital would have and therefore may not be admissible in court.
justinlilly|5 years ago
candiodari|5 years ago
thedudeabides5|5 years ago
https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/04/9727395/rape-kit-at...
A judge determines what's admissible in a court of law. That's why your texts, social media posts, etc are all admissable.
The companies in this space are not trying to fool anyone into not going into the hospital. They are trying to help serve the 80%+ of survivors that never go to the official system.
dogma1138|5 years ago
At home rape kits is a recipe for disaster for rape victims and the legal system.
glaive123|5 years ago
From the same article you posted:
> Defense attorneys worry that allowing victims to conduct their own rape exams could result in cross-contamination and raise issues of reasonable doubt. “If you want to frame someone, it’s easy to get their DNA onto a swab where you do a sex assault kit, and say, ‘Oh, look, here’s their DNA,’” criminal defense attorney Mark Reichel told the AP. Since they first hit the market last year, there has been a push to ban DIY kits for reasons like this.
Also from the article you posted:
> Northern California has issued a temporary order allowing rape kits to be collected by the survivor, at home, while a nurse walks them through the process via video call
It appears this is temporary.
nivethan|5 years ago
decker|5 years ago
jj345|5 years ago
underseacables|5 years ago
toomuchtodo|5 years ago
Founded by Mariska Hargitay of “Law and Order: SVU” fame.
MisterTea|5 years ago
JoeyBananas|5 years ago
oh_sigh|5 years ago
If the two people who founded this startup were going to take your advice - how would they do it? Just send a check to crime labs all over the country and hope they process the kit? Start a letter writing campaign?
DanBC|5 years ago
Rape kits provide no useful information in these cases.
hundchenkatze|5 years ago
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/04/diy-remote-rape...
knowthevibes|5 years ago
glaive123|5 years ago
The article you shared appears to conflict with what this startup is offering.
> It's being called a "temporary protocol" that so far, has only been used once on April 5. Nassoura said the process starts by the victim calling law enforcement and then, "The officer goes to the victim's residence, places it (the sexual assault test) on the front door step, waits in the vehicle. The victim then goes to the front door gets the sample and they begin a zoom video call." That zoom video call involves a forensic nurse, the detective and a victim advocate. Once the victim's statement is taken by the officer, the nurse is the only one that remains on the call. The victim then self-collects the sample under the nurse's guidance and direction.
And to your point:
> Moreover, further research will show you that the startup explicitly encourages survivors to visit a hospital or contact law enforcement if at all possible.
The problem is, this startup's business model specifically relies on victims not visiting the hospital.
> Ask sexual assault survivors what they would like to see instead.
They would probably want their evidence to be admitted in court, rather than raise reasonable doubt.
varajelle|5 years ago
I read the title as there was a startup selling kits for DIY rape. Pretty immoral indeed. I was just wondering what's in the kit.
jj345|5 years ago
[deleted]
TeaDrunk|5 years ago
unknown|5 years ago
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