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SALT LAKE CITY — Prosecutors are calling for better statewide uniformity in the investigation of sexual assault cases because few of those cases are leading to convictions.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said improved training, investigation consistency and interagency collaboration are needed to eliminate "systemic failures and procedural impediments" that occur during sexual assault investigations. Gill said attrition of other types of cases are lower because they are usually handled with more standardized procedures.
"We have more uniformity in the way we investigate a DUI case (than sexual assault cases). What does that say for us in terms of what our priorities are?" Gill said. "When it comes to law enforcement and prosecution, justice should not be the accident of geography."
Gill met with members of the Salt Lake City Council Tuesday, almost two months after police and investigators began submitting a backlog of rape kits for processing. He called on the council to engage in an effort to create a multi-disciplinary team to update outdated training for healthcare providers, social workers, law enforcement, prosecutors and other agencies handling sexual assault cases.
"Our perceptions and our response is antiquated (for) everybody up and down the chain," he said. "We need to recognize that our old training methodologies, in light of new research, may not be sufficient to get the results we want."
Gill said the Unified, West Valley City and Salt Lake City police departments have begun working with the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office to bring policy in line with new training and investigative methods, which will be featured in training seminars in January and later on in the spring.
Our perceptions and our response is antiquated (for) everybody up and down the chain. We need to recognize that our old training methodologies, in light of new research, may not be sufficient to get the results we want.
–Sim Gill, Salt Lake County DA
Such training and policy updates will lead to better support for victims, higher-quality evidence necessary to prosecute criminals and prevention of future backlogs of evidence, according to Gill.
The council unanimously adopted a resolution requiring all past and future sexual assault evidence collection kits to be submitted to labs for testing.
Councilwoman Lisa Adams said the initiative to boost investigative continuity needs leadership from one person or agency to "spearhead" the standardization of sexual abuse investigations.
"I really like the idea of a uniformed approach," Adams said. "But I'm looking to see somebody who can say, 'Let's work together.'"
Gill, however, said collaboration is taking place without a single agency coordinating the effort.
"Is there one super czar leader that's going to lead the way? No. But it is occurring on a collaborative level of conversation," he said. "We have people that are coming together, and I think we're moving in the right direction."
Councilwoman Erin Mendenhall expressed support for additional training for investigators, but said practices are sometimes driven by tradition, which can be difficult to alter.
"I'm excited to hear about educational efforts," Mendenhall said. "If you're trying to affect culture, it's an elusive creature. And I think there are ways to get at it."
Gill called for additional funding for the Salt Lake County Children's Justice Center, which he said has been largely successful in helping victims while allowing comprehensive investigations to take place.
He added that investigative agencies throughout the state will join the effort if they see success in places like the center, as well as law enforcement agencies in Salt Lake County that are changing practices.
"As we establish that process, I absolutely believe if you build it, they will come," he said.
