If victims of sexual assault wish to press charges against their attackers, members of the Sexual Assault Response Team act as a liaison between the law and survivors.

Following initial contact with an advocate, survivors meet with a law enforcement officer to discuss the details of the sexual assault.

The officer who makes the initial contact with the advocate is a representative from Iowa State’s Department of Public Safety, Ames Police Department or the Story County Sheriff’s office.

All members from these agencies have been specially trained in dealing with sexual assaults. In addition, they have purchased specialized equipment for investigating these kinds of cases, said Patricia Harvey, coordinator of SART.

“We’re there to take a report and get the facts, when and where it happened and if there’s a suspect,” said Nichole Sipes, patrol officer with the Ames Police Department.

When they meet with the survivor, officers try to go out of uniform so they don’t seem intimidating.

“Once we’re there, we talk to them and let them know their options and make sure they get the medical attention they need, or we can follow through with an investigation,” said Aaron DeLashmutt, patrol officer at DPS. “We explain to them that by talking to us, they’re not officially reporting.”

DeLashmutt added that the officers leave all investigation choices to the survivor.

“Anytime we do something, they know about it because we don’t do anything without their approval,” he said.

Even if the survivor decides not to follow through with the investigation, officers try to take a report in case it is needed to prosecute later.

“I just let them know that if they tell me now what happened and later down the line they want to pursue charges, we already have that report and possible physical evidence,” Sipes said.

Sipes said the officers can obtain a search warrant and collect physical evidence from the crime scene, or they can collect the victim’s clothing for evidence.

DeLashmutt said the incident can be reported with an intent to arrest, or the incident can be reported anonymously by the survivor or a friend of the survivor.

Sipes added that she doesn’t ask for a written statement at this time. She sends the forms home with the victim and asks that they be returned in a few days.

Sometimes SART will assign more than one officer to the case. In these incidents, one officer remains in contact with the survivor, another will collect evidence and the final officer will apprehend the suspect, Harvey said.

Following the report, and if the survivor wants to pursue the case, officers locate the suspect and meet with him or her to get the other side of the story.

Story County attorney Stephen Holmes said his office is consulted by the investigating officers and given details of the assault. This is done to determine if a charge can be filed immediately or if further investigation is needed.

Holmes said it is essential to contact the police as soon as possible, so the best evidence can be used toward a successful prosecution.

If sufficient evidence is developed, an arrest is made, Holmes said.

Defendants have to proceed through the criminal process beginning with their appearance — where they are informed of the charge — to the preliminary hearing and then to the arraignment. There, the defendant enters a formal plea of guilty or not guilty.

“Usually, a person enters a not-guilty plea and the case has a trial date assigned,” Holmes said.

Holmes said the threat of trial helps resolve cases.

“Having to appear in court in front of a jury has more of an effect on defendants than most people realize,” he said. “The thought alone of a group of people sitting in judgment over a serious allegation is enough to get most defendants to plead guilty.”

Holmes said cases can go to trial on the statement of the survivor alone, but prosecutors want to have additional physical or circumstantial evidence to corroborate the case.

He added that his office “will always hold a philosophy that supports a victim’s assertions.”

“We take the victim’s wishes into consideration during the course of the prosecution,” he said. “We make every attempt not to re-victimize the survivor by our efforts to see that a sexual predator be brought to justice.”