Illinois Lawmakers Pass Bill to Improve Sexual Assault Evidence Handling
May 23, 2019
On May 22, the Illinois House and Senate each passed a bill to implement a sexual assault tracking system in the state and sent it to Gov. J.B. Pritzker for his signature. SB 1411 amends the Sexual Assault Evidence Submission Act. It requires the Illinois State Police to establish a sexual assault evidence tracking system that conforms to the recommendations made by the Sexual Assault Evidence Tracking and Reporting Commission. It directs the state police to have the tracking system operational within a year of being signed into law. SB 1411 further requires Illinois hospitals, and out-of-state hospitals approved by the Illinois Department of Public Health, to receive transfers of Illinois sexual assault survivors. The law also requires approved pediatric health care facilities to comply with state police rules regulating the collection and tracking of sexual assault evidence.