(a) Designated investigators of state hospitals shall request a sexual assault forensic medical examination for any resident of a state hospital who is a victim or reasonably suspected to be a victim of sexual assault, as defined in Section 15610.63, performed at an appropriate facility off the grounds of a state hospital in accordance with Sections 13823.5 to 13823.12, inclusive, of the Penal Code, which includes, but is not limited to, the requirement that the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the city or county in which the state hospital is located be notified by the person performing the sexual assault forensic medical examination and that consent is obtained as required by subdivisions (a) and (c) of Section 13823.11 of the Penal Code.
(b) The sexual assault forensic medical examination described in subdivision (a) may be performed at a state hospital by an independent sexual assault forensic examiner designated to perform examinations of victims of sexual assault in the jurisdiction of the state hospital only if it is deemed safer for the victim and the state hospital’s examination facilities are equipped with forensic examination and evidence collection capability comparable to that of the designated community examination facility, as determined by the independent sexual assault forensic examiner.
(Added by Stats. 2013, Ch. 724, Sec. 4. (SB 651) Effective January 1, 2014.)