For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3 - 40
The Sexual Assault
Nurse Examiner (SANE):
Medical Practitioner or Arm of Law Enforcement?
Robert Kinnear
I
magine attending a jury trial where a defendant
stands accused of a sex crime, and during the
trial the victim never takes the stand to testify
against the defendant. The defendant never
receives the chance to confront and cross examine
the victim. The only evidence the jury hears comes
from a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE),
who during an exam of the victim asked questions
regarding the crime and testifies about what the
victim stated. The defendant is convicted, never
being able to question his accuser. This scenario
happens frequently in the prosecution of sexual
assault cases in some jurisdictions.
This two-part article will examine the
history and training of the SANE, the statistical
data regarding victims of sexual assault and
the relationship of SANE intervention, and
admissibility issues of SANE testimony at trial.
SANEs are trained in the forensic examination
of victims. Studies have shown that the
involvement of a SANE increases the prosecution
and conviction rates of defendants. Given the
forensic training of the SANE, and how exams of
sexual assault victims are conducted, the SANE
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For The Defense
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Vol. 4, Issue 3
may not function as a medical practitioner but
instead serve as an arm of law enforcement,
whose primary purpose is gathering evidence
for prosecution and not for medical treatment
of the victim. Accordingly, while a SANE should
be allowed to provide testimony regarding
objective medical findings, hearsay testimony
of statements made by the victim should not be
admitted through a SANE unless it meets narrow
hearsay exceptions. Even then, testimony of a
SANE proffered under the tender years hearsay
exception should be challenged as a violation of
a defendant's constitutional right to confront his
accuser.
The History and Current State of SANE
Programs
SANE nurses are specially trained forensic
nurses who offer "crisis intervention and
emotional support, healthcare, injury detection
and treatment, and state-of-art forensic medical
evidence collection."1 SANE nurses work with
police and prosecutors for case consultation and
testify as fact and expert witnesses at trial.2
For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3
Contents
For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3 - 1
For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3 - 2
For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3 - Contents
For the Defense - Vol. 4, Issue 3 - 4
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