Hold Team Meetings . Monitor and Evaluate Your Efforts . Sustain Your SART . Know Your Team . Critical Issues
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Law Enforcement Officials
U.S. Border Patrol Officers
SARTs that border Mexico or Canada have unique issues to consider to meet victims' medical and emotional needs and to address international legal issues. For example, the Arizona Attorney General's SART Protocol proactively addresses border patrol responses as follows:63
When Border Patrol agents, in the course of their duties, become aware that a sexual assault has occurred, they should determine who has primary jurisdiction and refer the case to the appropriate law enforcement agency. When Border Patrol agents come upon the scene of a sexual assault in progress, they should respond and then refer the case to the appropriate local law enforcement agency.
In Texas, the Harlingen Family Crisis Center developed a strong relationship with the Bayview Border Patrol in response to a critical need to offer services to undocumented females who cross into the United States. The collaboration received a community empowerment award in 2002 from the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, which stated that "the collaboration is so strong that at times, border patrol agents personally transport victims to the Family Crisis Center offices to receive counseling and crisis intervention. This type of collaboration is a shining example of two agencies working together to assist sexual assault survivors who may otherwise go without sexual assault services."
