How bad is the problem of rape kits going untested? We don’t even know how many are lying around on police department shelves. Several groups in New York have teamed up to put an end to the rape kit backlog, and their first step is to finally get an idea of what they’re dealing with.
Natasha Alexenko, founder of the Long Island-based group Natasha’s Justice Project, tells the Associated Press that she believe there could be as many as 180,000 untested rape kits in the country. According to a recent study by the Justice Department, there’s no accurate count because 43% of law enforcement agencies don’t even have a computerized system for keeping track of forensic evidence. It’s possible that some departments are losing track of the kits after rape victims go through the lengthy and invasive evidence collection process. Sometimes the kits aren’t tested if the victim says she knows her attacker, but lack of resources is believed to be the main reason the rape kit backlog exists. DNA analysis can cost $800 to $1,500 per kit.
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