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Healing Hearts Crisis Center got rape exam equipment through a grant secured by the Bureau of Women's Affairs, according to a release from the bureau. Healing Hearts is Guam's only rape crisis center and now has exam equipment and procedures to better examine survivors and collect the evidence needed to convict rapists, BWA said. BWA used funding from its 2020 Increasing Criminal Justice Responses grant to buy a colposcope, a rape exam kit, and two laptops in order for Healing Hearts to help sexual assault examiners more accurately collect the evidence that prosecutors need to convict rapists. The ICJR grant closed out earlier this year. An examination protocol that includes colposcopy, according to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, "may be the most reliable means to document and characterize genital findings in rape victims and to evaluate whether findings may be linked to a reported sexual assault." "The colposcope is critical in the forensic examination of victims of sexual assault,” said Carissa Pangelinan, director of the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center, which oversees Healing Hearts. Pangelinan said when Healing Hearts uses the colposcope, the top priority is patient-centered care, with emphasis on respecting every person’s autonomy, using informed consent every step of the way "to minimize re-traumatizing our patient while this exam is being conducted." "The Bureau of Women's Affairs having secured funding for this type of equipment and to train sexual assault examiners, as well as fund victims’ legal services and enhance law enforcement prosecution of the perpetrators, is part of our administration’s efforts to help victims and deter perpetrators. We are focused on making our streets and homes safer for our people,” Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said in a statement. Guam consistently ranks among the top five locations in the United States per capita for rates of domestic violence and sexual assault, according to the FBI Uniform Crime Report. The bureau secured grant funding from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Violence Against Women to help persons who are victims/survivors of domestic or dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking. Jayne Flores, Bureau of Women’s Affairs director, notes that over the past six years, Guam Police Department's Domestic Assault Response Team statistics show that an average of 71% of criminal sexual conduct cases have been committed against minors, a large majority of them females. “We are working hard to bring down these numbers,” Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio said in a statement. “Behind each sexual assault number is a person whose life is forever changed by this crime. And we need to remember that there is never any excuse for sexual assault. Never.” BWA's Flores noted that a total of $53,105.65 from the nearly $900,000 grant was subgranted to the nonprofit organization Guam Sexual Assault and Abuse Resource Center Association. The majority of this funding provided $35,488.48 in training costs for seven registered nurses and one island pediatrician to be trained in how to conduct sexual assault exams, and purchased $12,826 worth of equipment, including a basic colposcope worth $10,055, for Healing Hearts. In addition to Guam Sexual Assault and Abuse Resource Center Association, the grant also funded audio and visual recording equipment for GPD to be able to conduct forensic experiential trauma interview technique-based interviews to ensure proper evidence is obtained to help improve the prosecution rate of cases; two victim advocate positions for GPD; personnel for the Office of the Attorney General; and personnel for the Guam Public Defender Service Corporation to provide legal services for victims. “The recording equipment we purchased with the ICJR grant is set up so that the victim only has to tell their story one time, instead of four or five times. It also allows us to provide the recording as evidence for prosecution,” Police Chief Stephen Ignacio said in a statement. “So not only is this equipment helping GPD to be more victim-centered, but also, we are helping prosecutors to more effectively convict the perpetrators." Flores noted that BWA plans to apply for another ICJR grant next year, in order to enhance victim services and assist law enforcement with continued successful prosecution of crimes.
