Purpose

• The bill aims to improve handling of sexual assault cases by requiring law enforcement agencies to have written policies for responding to and investigating sexual assaults, creating specialized training for investigators and supervisors, funding the training program, and evaluating the program’s effectiveness.

What the bill would require

• Policy requirements

  • The chief law enforcement officer of each agency must establish and enforce a written policy on how to respond to and investigate reports of sexual assault.
  • The policy should largely follow the model policy on responding to sexual assault (from the boards’ guidance) and may expand beyond it or be identical to it.
  • Chiefs must certify to the board that the policy is in place and being enforced, and must send a copy to the board.

• Training requirements

  • The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) must develop and maintain a 14-hour specialized, intensive training for peace officers who investigate sexual assault and for the highest-ranking supervisors overseeing these investigations.
  • The training must use a victim-centered, trauma-informed approach and cover topics such as the neurobiology of trauma, trauma-informed interviewing, and investigative techniques.
  • The training must include different strategies for interviewing victims and suspects, and separate approaches for adolescent versus adult sexual assault cases.
  • The BCA must collaborate with other organizations to create an online, one-hour continuing education course for peace officers that focuses on a victim-centered, trauma-informed approach to interacting with victims and responding to sexual violence calls.
  • The curriculum must be adaptable for different environments and delivery methods (including multimedia, video, segmented delivery, and roll calls) and must include information about available resources for victims, including community-based victim advocates.
  • Both the 14-hour and 1-hour courses must be tracked via an online learning module.
  • Training curricula must be reviewed and updated annually in collaboration with specified associations and experts; the BCA has final authority over the contents.

• Curriculum development and collaboration

  • The BCA must work with the Minnesota Sheriffs Association, the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault, the Minnesota County Attorneys Association, and trauma/sexual assault experts to design, update, and improve the training.
  • The training must be suitable for use within individual agencies and support victim resources.

• Evaluation of training

  • Within 180 days of the act’s effective date, the BCA must contract with a qualified research partner to evaluate the training programs using rigorous methods (ideally randomized controlled trials or strong quasi-experimental designs).
  • The evaluation should assess whether training advances a trauma-informed, victim-centered approach, identifies best practices and gaps, and seeks to improve case outcomes (e.g., higher case clearance rates).
  • Results can be published or publicized as long as personally identifiable information is protected.

• Implementation timelines for agencies

  • Completion deadlines for current officers vary by agency size, with a staged rollout:
  • Agencies with 1,500 or more officers: complete by Jan 1, 2029
  • Agencies with 200–1,499 officers: complete by Jan 1, 2030
  • Agencies with 50–199 officers: complete by Jan 1, 2031
  • Agencies with fewer than 50 officers: complete by Jan 1, 2032
  • The staged timelines are intended to ease implementation and rollout.
  • The rollout schedule provisions expire on July 1, 2032.

• Funding and appropriation

  • An appropriation from the general fund in fiscal year 2027 is provided to the Department of Public Safety for the BCA to develop and maintain the sexual assault investigation training programs.

• Legal and oversight changes

  • The statute (Minnesota Statutes 2024 section 626.8442) is amended to implement these policy and training requirements, with the BCA having authority over curriculum content and ongoing updates, and with annual review to align with best practices.

Significant changes to existing law

• Introduces a formal, mandatory policy framework for sexual assault responses at each agency.
• Establishes a structured, trauma-informed, victim-centered training program for investigators and supervisors, including both a 14-hour in-depth course and a 1-hour online refresher.
• Requires ongoing collaboration with professional associations and advocacy groups to shape training.
• Adds an explicit evaluation component using rigorous research methods to measure training effectiveness and outcomes.
• Establishes a phased, time-bound rollout across agencies of different sizes and ties funding to the program’s development and maintenance.

Impact and implications

• Expect more standardized and trauma-informed responses to sexual assault cases across law enforcement.
• Potential improvements in victim interactions, evidence handling, and investigative strategies, with the goal of better case outcomes.
• Resource and scheduling impacts on agencies during the phased rollout; agencies must coordinate training delivery and tracking.
• Emphasis on measurement and accountability through formal evaluation.

Relevant terms - sexual assault - trauma-informed - victim-centered - neurobiology of trauma - trauma-informed interviewing - investigative techniques - adolescent vs adult sexual assault - evidence preservation - policy - chief law enforcement officer - board (policy oversight) - Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) - training curriculum - continuing education (one-hour and fourteen-hour courses) - online learning module / elearning - community-based victim advocates - Minnesota Sheriffs Association - Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault - Minnesota County Attorneys Association - randomized controlled trials (and evidence-based research) - case clearance rates - general fund appropriation - fiscal year 2027 - implementation timeline (agency size-based rollout) - confidentiality and data protection - Chapter 13 (privacy provisions)

Relevant Terms - sexual assault, trauma-informed, victim-centered, neurobiology of trauma, interviewing, evidence preservation, policy, BCA, training, continuing education, online module, victims, advocacy, sheriffs association, coalition against sexual assault, county attorneys association, randomized trials, evaluation, clearance rates, general fund, appropriation, rollout, adolescent, adult