Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has announced the launch of a new statewide tracking system for Sexual Assault Forensic Exam (SAFE) Kits in New Jersey. The initiative, formalized through Attorney General Directive 2025-01, aims to increase transparency and give sexual assault survivors direct access to information about the status of their forensic kits.
The Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ), Office of Justice Data (OJD), and Division of Violence Intervention and Victim Assistance (VIVA) collaborated on developing this advanced tracking system, which was first announced in November 2023. The system is designed to support survivors during investigations and prosecutions by allowing them to monitor the progress of their evidence without needing to contact intermediaries.
In 2024, the New Jersey Legislature supported the tracking system by passing S715/A908, furthering efforts to address issues related to sexual assault evidence handling.
Attorney General Platkin stated: “Because we know that victims of sexual assault are left with more than physical injuries, over the past three years, New Jersey has improved our policies to better support survivors of sexual assault and re-commit to our mission of being victim-centered and trauma-informed. Launching this tracking system is our latest step in supporting survivors, giving them the choice to stay abreast of their own SAFE Kits without having to go through intermediaries or risk re-traumatization through unwanted updates. This builds on our previous efforts to increase transparency and reduce trauma by re-centering this process on the survivor. We have changed the way law enforcement and prosecutors handle these cases, and we have made it easier for victims and survivors to access information and resources to support them in the aftermath of victimization.”
Theresa L. Hilton, Director of DCJ, said: “Survivors of sexual assault have the right to know the status of evidence from their SAFE Kits and to make sure that they are being processed. The evidence procured from SAFE Kits is often critical to prosecuting these cases, and we are committed to ensuring that survivors know we are doing everything in our power to hold perpetrators accountable.”
Kristin Golden, Chief Data Officer at OJD, commented: “A statewide sexual assault kit tracking system enables us to better understand the processing of sexual assault kits throughout New Jersey, consistent with our commitments to data-driven policy. Even more, the tracking system underscores our commitment to transparency allowing survivors of sexual assault to follow their SAFE Kits as they are processed.”
Patricia Teffenhart, Executive Director of VIVA, added: “Often, a factor in a survivor’s decision to engage in the criminal justice process is dependent on how trauma-informed they perceive that process to be. Providing survivors with a tool that allows them to confidentially and proactively track the status of the specimens collected after a sexual assault without having to engage with an intermediary is a major step in making a difficult and often confusing process more accessible and transparent. An added bonus? No survivor who has gone through the process of a sexual assault forensic medical exam needs to worry that their kit is ‘lost’ or unaccounted for – with this system we are treating these critical kits with the care survivors deserve.”
The new policy aligns with broader state efforts over recent years aimed at improving responses for victims through survivor-centered approaches. Previous directives mandated that SAFE Kits be retained for 20 years if a survivor was undecided about immediate processing and required all consented kits be tested by forensic laboratories rather than leaving decisions up to law enforcement discretion. In April 2024, another directive expanded activation periods for Sexual Assault Response Teams from five days up to seven days following an incident report—giving survivors more time for accessing services based on advances in medical and forensic science.
