Title IX Notice on Preservation of Evidence
Medical care following a sexual assault is always encouraged; the main goal is to ensure your health and well-being. Treatment is crucial to make sure there are no physical injuries requiring immediate attention. Additionally, the collection, documentation and preservation of evidence is critical to potential criminal prosecution and to obtaining restraining/protective orders, if the complainant chooses to report the assault, and it is particularly time sensitive. The College, working in connection with The Harbor and Health Services, will inform the Complainant of their options for seeking medical attention and a Sexual Assault Nurse Examination, as well the importance of preserving evidence by taking actions such as the following:
Sexual Assault
- Seek forensic medical assistance at the nearest hospital, ideally within 120 hours of the incident (sooner is better). Survivors who seek medical care and an evidence collection kit may do so anonymously, and may still decide to report to law enforcement or Title IX at a later date.
- Avoid urinating, showering, bathing, washing hands or face, or douching, if possible, but evidence may still be collected even if you do.
- If oral sexual contact took place, refrain from smoking, eating, drinking, or brushing teeth.
- If clothes are changed, place soiled clothes in a paper bag (plastic destroys evidence) or a secure evidence container (if provided one by law enforcement)
- Seeking medical treatment can be essential, even if it is not for the purposes of collecting forensic evidence.
Stalking/Dating Violence/Domestic Violence/Sex-Based Harassment
- Evidence in the form of text and voice messages will be lost in most cases if the Complainant changes their phone number.
- Make a secondary recording of any voice messages and/or save the audio files to a cloud server.
- Take screenshots and/or a video recording of any text messages or other electronic messages (e.g., Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook).
- Save copies of email and social media correspondence, including notifications related to account access alerts.
- Take timestamped photographs of any physical evidence, including notes, gifts, etc., in place when possible.
- Save copies of any messages, including those showing any request for no further contact.
- Obtain copies of call logs showing the specific phone number being used rather than a saved contact name if possible.
- Keep all documented evidence in a safe, secure location.
- For an Incident and Behavioral Log, visit https://www.stalkingawareness.org/documentation-log/
During the initial meeting between the Complainant and Title IX Coordinator, the importance of taking these actions will be discussed, if timely.