In 2000 then governor of Alaska Tony Knowles signed a bill stopping the practice of charging victims of rape for assault kits. Palin’s Wasilla was one of the towns who sent rape victims bills and whose police chief, appointed by Palin, didn’t like the decision to forbid the practice.
The new law makes it illegal for any law enforcement agency to bill victims or victims insurance companies for the costs of examinations that take place to collect evidence of a sexual assault or determine if a sexual assault did occur.
We would never bill the victim of a burglary for fingerprinting and photographing the crime scene, or for the cost of gathering other evidence, Knowles said. Nor should we bill rape victims just because the crime scene happens to be their bodies.
While the Alaska State Troopers and most municipal police agencies have covered the cost of exams, which cost between $300 to $1,200 apiece, the Wasilla police department does charge the victims of sexual assault for the tests.
Wasilla Police Chief Charlie Fannon does not agree with the new legislation, saying the law will require the city and communities to come up with more funds to cover the costs of the forensic exams.
In the past weve charged the cost of exams to the victims insurance company when possible. I just dont want to see any more burden put on the taxpayer, Fannon said.
I don’t think there can be any doubt that Palin was well aware of this as BitchPhD states “in a town of that size, the mayor doesn’t get to plead ignorance of policies or public statements of her own chief of police”.
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 1 trackback }