SEXUAL ASSAULT CASES IN THE LEGAL-SYSTEM - POLICE, PROSECUTOR, AND VICTIM PERSPECTIVES

The purposes of this study were to assess (a) the extent of attrition in the processing of sexual assault cases in the legal system, (b) fac tors associated with attrition at various stages in the process, and ( c) victims' experiences in the legal system and the relations between these experiences and recovery. Our results suggest that substantial a ttrition continues to occur in the prosecution of rape cases, that mor e severe assaults are prosecuted more vigorously, that victims are gen erally satisfied with the police (but not with the legal system in gen eral), and that neither attitudes nor case outcomes are associated wit h victims' postrape recovery. Research and policy implications are dis cussed.