Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bipartisan bill Tuesday that will grant victims of sexual assault the right to receive notifications of developments in criminal cases that stem from sexual assault.
The bipartisan legislation, which expands the state’s Sexual Assault Victim’s Bill of Rights, passed through both chambers of the New Jersey Legislature unanimously earlier this year.
“We commend the courage and bravery exhibited by sexual assault survivors that have come forward and we are here to support them on every step of their journeys to justice,” Murphy said. “This bipartisan legislation increases transparency with law enforcement to ensure a victim-centered approach and guarantee that survivors and their cases are treated with the care and consideration they deserve.”
The legislation requires law enforcement officials to provide updates to victims in four specific scenarios: if a DNA profile of an assailant was obtained during the processing of evidence; if a DNA profile of an assailant has been entered into a data bank; there is a match between the DNA profile of an assailant and another DNA profile in a data bank; and if sexual assault evidence is submitted to a forensic laboratory, if that evidence is compared against any data bank, and the results of the comparison.
“Having access to information related to their cases can help survivors of sexual violence in their healing journeys,” said Patricia Teffenhart, the executive director of the Division of Violence Intervention and Victim Assistance and a longtime advocate of sexual assault victims. “By enacting this legislation, Governor Murphy and the Legislature are once again raising New Jersey’s standard in putting survivors at the center of our justice-seeking efforts.”
A victim may also request law enforcement agencies to provide updates on the status of evidence.
“Victims of sexual assault have a right to know the details of their cases. New Jersey’s survivor-centered, trauma-informed policies have already made great strides in making our criminal justice system more accessible to survivors,” Attorney General Matt Platkin said in a release. “With this critical legislation, Governor Murphy and the Legislature are not only increasing our chances of successfully prosecuting sexual violence offenders and diminishing their threat to public safety, they are also helping to increase survivors’ trust in our justice system.”
State Sens. Linda Greenstein (D-Plainsboro) and Declan O’Scanlon (R-Little Silver) and Assemblywomen Carol Murphy (D-Mount Laurel), Michele Matsikoudis (R-New Providence), and Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D-Trenton) served as the primary sponsors of the legislation.