SAFER Act of 2017

To reauthorize the SAFER Act of 2013, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Reporting Act of 2017 SAFER Act of 2017 2. Best practices for rape kit retention of sexual assault forensic evidence for unsolved crimes (a) In general Section 414 of the Justice for All Act of 2004 ( 42 U.S.C. 14136f (1) in subsection (a)— (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)— (i) by inserting and the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance Justice (ii) by striking and government , government (iii) by inserting and other national and State subject matter experts, shall (B) in paragraph (1)— (i) by inserting and encourage compliance with establish (ii) by inserting connected to cases in which no person is currently convicted, including best practices for the preservation of sexual assault evidence collection kits or their probative contents for unsolved cases (2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following: (b) Deadlines The Director of the National Institute of Justice and the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance shall— (1) not later than December 31, 2018, publish the best practices established under subsection (a)(1); and (2) not later than 5 years after the date on which the best practices are established under subsection (a)(1), and once every 5 years thereafter, conduct a review of the best practices, and update the best practices as necessary. ; and (3) in subsection (c), by inserting , except as otherwise required under section 3772 of title 18, United States Code (b) Sexual assault survivors' rights Section 3772(a)(2)(A) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking subject to paragraph (3), 3. Pediatric sexual assault nurse examiners Section 304(c)(2) of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of 2004 ( 42 U.S.C. 14136a (1) by inserting , both adult and pediatric, role of forensic nurses (2) by striking and elder abuse elder abuse, and, in particular, the need for pediatric sexual assault nurse examiners, including such nurse examiners working in the multidisciplinary setting, in responding to abuse of both children and adolescents 4. Prosecution of DNA cold cases (a) Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program Section 2 of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14135 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following: (9) To increase the capacity of State and local prosecution offices to address the backlog of violent crime cases in which suspects have been identified through DNA evidence. ; and (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following: (5) Allocation of grant awards for prosecutors For each fiscal year, not less than 5 percent, but not more than 7 percent, of the grant amounts distributed under paragraph (1) shall, if sufficient applications to justify such amounts are received by the Attorney General, be awarded for purposes described in subsection (a)(9), provided that none of the funds required to be distributed under this paragraph shall decrease or otherwise limit the availability of funds required to be awarded to States or units of local government under paragraph (3). . (b) Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016 Section 3(a) of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016 ( Public Law 114–324 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking and (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (3) not less than 5 percent, but not more than 7 percent, of such amounts shall be provided for grants for prosecutors to increase the capacity of State and local prosecution offices to address the backlog of violent crime cases in which suspects have been identified through DNA evidence. . 5. Reducing the rape kit backlog (a) Reauthorization Section 2(c)(4) of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 ( 42 U.S.C. 14135(c)(4) 2017 2022 (b) Repeal of sunset (1) In general Section 1006 of the SAFER Act of 2013 ( 42 U.S.C. 14135 (2) Technical and conforming amendment The table of contents for the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 ( Public Law 113–4

Summary: Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Reporting Act of 2017 or the SAFER Act of 2017 This bill amends the Innocence Protection Act of 2004 to modify requirements with respect establishing and implementing best practices for evidence retention. The bill amends the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of 2004 to require the Department of Justice (DOJ), in providing information about the role of forensic nurses to certain health-related entities, to provide information about the role of both adult and pediatric forensic nurses. DOJ must also provide additional information on the need for pediatric sexual assault nurse examiners in responding to the abuse of both children and adolescents. The bill amends the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 to modify the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program: to add, as a purpose area, increasing the capacity of prosecutors to address the backlog of violent crime cases involving suspects identified through DNA evidence; and to reauthorize through FY2022 the requirement for DOJ to allocate a certain percentage of program funds for grants to audit backlogged rape kits.