Sexual Assault Response Teams in South Dakota

What is a Sexual Response Team

A Sexual Assault Response Team is a coordinated, community-based approach to responding to sexual assault. It is a multidisciplinary group of professionals who work together to provide immediate, survivor-centered support following sexual assault or sexual violence. SARTs focus on ensuring victims receive medical care, emotional support, legal guidance, and advocacy in a coordinated and trauma-informed manner.

In South Dakota, SARTs aim to:

• Improve survivor experience and access to services
• Increase offender accountability
• Strengthen coordination between agencies
• Reduce duplication, gaps, and delays in response
• Promote consistent, trauma-informed practices statewide

Rather than focusing on individual cases, SARTs focus on how systems work together to better serve survivors.

Purpose of Sexual Assault Response Teams

The primary objectives of a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) are to collaborate across systems to deliver consistent, high-quality, victim-centered responses to sexual assault survivors while also ensuring ongoing and effective offender accountability. Through this coordinated approach, SARTs work to reduce trauma for survivors, improve access to comprehensive support services, and ensure respectful, coordinated responses from all involved agencies. SARTs create and share community resources, connect victims and survivors with advocacy, medical, legal, and counseling services, and develop and maintain clear guidelines that support an effective, consistent, and trauma-informed response across systems.

Why SARTs Matter in South Dakota

Sexual assault is a community-wide issue, not the responsibility of a single agency. Survivors in South Dakota may interact with hospitals, advocacy programs, law enforcement, prosecutors, and tribal or federal systems—often within a short period and during an intensely traumatic time.

Without coordination, these interactions can become overwhelming and harmful. Fragmented responses can:

• Re-traumatize survivors
• Reduce reporting and participation
• Undermine investigations and prosecutions
• Create mistrust in systems meant to help

SARTs help ensure that survivors across South Dakota receive consistent, respectful, and survivor-centered responses, regardless of where they live.

Who Is Involved in a Sexual Assault Response Team?

Sexual Assault Response Teams typically include:

• Sexual assault advocates
• Healthcare providers and Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs)
• Law enforcement officers
• Prosecutors
• Victim service organizations
• Mental health professionals

Each member has a defined role but collaborates closely to center survivor needs.

Key Functions of Sexual Assault Response Teams

• Crisis intervention and emotional support
• Medical exams and evidence collection
• Victim advocacy and accompaniment
• Law enforcement response coordination
• Legal information and court support
• Safety planning and referrals

Survivor-Centered Response in South Dakota Communities

Key Considerations

South Dakota presents unique challenges for sexual assault response, including:

• Rural and frontier geography
• Long travel distances for exams and services
• Confidentiality concerns in small communities
• Tribal, state, and federal jurisdictional complexities
• Limited local resources

SARTs help communities tailor responses to these realities more effectively over time and adapt to changing needs. while maintaining survivor-centered values.

The Impact of a Strong South Dakota SART

When SARTs work well, survivors feel supported and professionals feel more confident in their roles. Investigations are stronger, prosecution outcomes improve, and communities become safer and more connected.

A successful SART requires commitment, mutual respect, accountability, and ongoing learning. When systems work together, survivors in South Dakota don’t have to navigate their healing journey alone.

Building or Strengthening a SART in South Dakota

Communities interested in building or strengthening a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) in South Dakota can begin by identifying committed partners and establishing shared goals and values. Defining roles, creating clear communication protocols, and scheduling regular meetings provide a strong foundation for effective collaboration. SARTs do not need to be perfect from the start—beginning small and building over time allows teams to grow sustainably and respond to community needs.

To support this work, the South Dakota Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) Toolkit was developed to help communities across the state build, strengthen, and sustain effective, victim-centered responses to sexual assault. Drawing on more than two decades of SART experience in South Dakota, the toolkit compiles best practices, sample protocols, legal guidance, and practical tools for multidisciplinary teams, including advocacy programs, law enforcement, healthcare providers, prosecutors, Tribal Nations, and allied partners.

Designed with South Dakota’s rural and Tribal communities in mind, the toolkit addresses systems change, trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices, equitable access to services, and offender accountability. Recognizing that every community is unique, this resource is intended to help teams adapt best practices to local strengths, challenges, and needs while enhancing survivor safety and coordinated response efforts statewide.

Contact:  Brandi Storgaard at brandi@sdnafvsa.com

Central Dakota Sexual Assault Response Team