Untested rape kits: scores of thousands await forensic scrutiny
“[T]he light bulb is going off that this is the right thing to do.”
So says a principal with one victims’ advocacy group in discussing the growing movement in many states across the country that is focused upon the mass testing of rape kits assembled in sex crime cases.
In the context of what she is saying, the “right thing to do” is to take whatever steps are necessary to get untested kits off the shelves of back rooms in police departments and tested as soon as possible.
Based upon a considerable amount of empirical evidence that has emerged regarding the sheer number of untested rape kits, the need to take action — and quickly — is flatly dire.
Here’s why. According to the findings of a research team from USA TODAY, there exists “a national accumulation of untested kits that likely reaches well into the hundreds of thousands.” And those kits are widely scattered, sitting untouched — and, importantly, growing older — in approximately 18,000 different law enforcement agencies.
The clear utility of such kits in identifying, apprehending and punishing perpetrators of rape and other sexual crimes against other adults and children has been well established. Forensic evidence that emerges from testing can target a criminal in a given case. Moreover, and as noted in a recent article discussing the huge national inventory of yet-to-be-tested kits, DNA evidence that is entered into crime databases “can help link [a] suspect to other unsolved crimes.”
Legislators in many states are currently working on new laws that address the handling of rape kits. And national protocols for rape kits are anticipated to be released sometime this year.
Serving clients throughout the Greater Los Angeles and Southern California area, we represent victims in a variety of civil litigation cases. If you or a loved one has been injured, turn to an experienced Los Angeles personal injury or sexual assault lawyer.
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