For Immediate Release: April 20, 2021
Contact: Olivia Hall, media@endthebacklog.org
NEW YORK — The recent signing of HB 310 will ensure sexual assault survivors in Montana have meaningful rights and access to critical information about their rape kits. We applaud the Montana legislature and Governor Gianforte in the passage of this bill.
H.B. 310 builds upon existing victims’ rights in Montana. With this new law, survivors now have access to information such as the current status of their kit, whether the case has been submitted to the prosecuting attorney, contact information of the investigating officer, whether and why their case has been closed, and notification of their legal rights and availability of community based victim’s services.
“HB 310 is a meaningful step toward victims rights in Montana,” says Sarabeth Rees, Joyful Heart Foundation Board Member and Montana resident. “On behalf of Joyful Heart, I applaud the Montana Legislature for taking steps that give survivors access to information about their kits. Such access will help counter the sense of loss of self-determination and control that is often at the core of a sexual assault experience.”
Access to this kind of information is essential to survivor’s healing from the trauma of their assault. In 2016, Joyful Heart released Navigating Notification, a study on victim notification that found access to information about the status of their cases can promote healing for survivors of sexual assault, and that the lack of knowledge can be harmful to their wellbeing.
“Sexual assault victims should have the right to obtain information about the status of their rape kit, including when the kit is submitted to the lab, if a DNA profile is obtained, when the kit is entered into federal and state DNA database, and when a match occurs,” says Ilse Knecht, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Joyful Heart Foundation. “Behind every kit is a person — a sexual assault survivor — waiting for justice. We stand with every survivor who has taken the step of reporting the crime to the police and endured an invasive examination in search of DNA evidence left behind by the attacker and believe they should have access about their kits throughout the justice process.”
Through its End the Backlog initiative, Joyful Heart is implementing a national campaign to pass comprehensive rape kit reform legislation in all 50 states framed around six pillars for reform. These new laws represent important first steps in rape kit reform in Montana. Learn more about activity in Montana at: http://www.endthebacklog.org/Montana.