Legal system offers options to sexual assault victims

Last month, University alumna Cara Foley gave a tearful testimony that prompted a Washtenaw County judge to nullify a pre-arranged legal agreement and send her criminal sexual assault case to trial.

The legal system can often provide men and women who, like Foley, have faced sexual criminal conduct, a way to put their alleged assailants behind bars, said Lori Coates, Washtenaw County's assistant prosecuting attorney.

According to police standards, there are certain consistent elements that distinguish different forms of sexual assault. First-degree and third-degree sexual assault deal with penetration of some sort. Second-degree and fourth-degree actions deal with contact.

Coates said a woman's first step in getting a possible assailant behind bars is to report the incident to police.

"The report then comes to us," Coates said. "We review whether the criminal charges will be authorized."

Sarah Heuser, former interim director of the Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Center, said it is important to remember that regardless of which way a person chooses to cope with being raped, it is the right way for that person at that time.

"It is important to support them no matter what decision they make," Heuser said.

If a survivor decides to bring charges against alleged assailants, there are concrete ways to ensure the legal process will move ahead more smoothly.

"It is important for the survivor to not shower," Heuser said. "Don't wash your clothes or things related to the scene that go to the Michigan State Police criminal lab."

Ann Arbor is not free of incidents of criminal sexual conduct. Earlier this month, a 21-year-old student was allegedly sexually assaulted in Nichols Arboretum. After holding her at knife point, the perpetrator committed an act of first-degree criminal sexual assault, the student said.

Scientists at the Michigan State Crime Lab use an examination kit to learn DNA traits of an assailant, which can be used as evidence in a trial.

At University Hospitals, survivors can be treated for injuries and tested for sexually transmitted diseases, using prophylactic treatments administered by midwives. DNA tests performed on hair, skin and semen can provide circumstantial evidence that holds up strongly in trial.

"DNA is an acceptable science," Coates said. "DNA analysts testify in court on their findings and can influence the ultimate decision of the jury."

After the survivor decides to press charges, a police report is filed and reviewed by prosecutors to determine whether criminal charges will be authorized.

If prosecutors decide to pursue criminal charges, a preliminary hearing is set to formalize the complaint against the defendant.

"In the preliminary hearing, some evidence is submitted," Coates said. "At the probable cause hearing, not all of the information has to be presented. You just have to prove to the judge that there is probable cause that the person charged committed the crime."

In many cases, a judge reviews the information and decides whether the case should go to court.

Foley, who claims she was raped by a family member in 1991, said when the judge at her preliminary hearing said the case was going to trial, she was both happy and relieved. Foley said her trust was shattered after the incident.

"I thought he was family," Foley said. "If you can't trust family, who can you trust?"

Foley said the results of the preliminary hearing, which was held in September, encouraged her to press on to trial against her assailant. Though the case is still pending, Foley said the fact that it is going to trial made her confident that the defendant would receive punishment for what he did to her.

"This hearing feels like a win," Foley said at the time. "Three months is just too easy. I would rather have a good ending, and he got the maximum sentence possible."

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