Sexual Assault Kit Examination, Backlog and Funding
By: Anna Frazier
“These kits are representing each survivor,” said Ilse Knecht, Director of Policy and Advocacy for the Joyful Heart Foundation, which led the push to test long-stored and long-ignored sexual assault kits across the nation. “It represents the horrible crime that the person had to endure.”
More than 50 percent of the 6,424 previously untested sexual assault kits that have been collecting dust in law enforcement storage facilities across the state of Arizona have been tested, resulting in eight indictments.
A sexual assault exam kit, SAK, is the contents of a medical examination conducted by a Sexual Assault Forensic Nurse that yields physical evidence, including blood, semen, saliva, fingernail scraping, urine, and clothing, that can be used in a criminal investigation.
The Joyful Heart Foundation doesn’t believe that their work is done. “Survivors go through this invasive and uncomfortable procedure with the expectation that the evidence will be tested and used to identify and potentially prosecute the offender,” Knecht said.
The Accountability Project, an initiative by the Joyful Heart Foundation, did open records requests to find out the amount of untested sexual assault kits in each state. This followed the U.S. Department of Justice’s findings in 2014, that there were an estimated 400,000 untested SAKs across the country.
The cost of testing SAKs varies, but is estimated to be $400 at minimum, ranging up to $1,500 depending on the amount of evidence being tested in the kit.
According to the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), sexual assault kits have remained in law enforcement storage facilities as a result of, “poor evidence tracking, outdated and ineffective investigation practices, misunderstanding of crime lab case acceptance policies, and lack of understanding among law enforcement about the value of testing kits in various types of cases.”
SAKI is a program through the U.S. Department of Justice that provides funds nationwide to reduce the number of unsubmitted sexual assault kits, investigate cases to apprehend offenders, and eliminate the accumulation of unsubmitted kits from reoccurring.
Knecht agreed that lack of understanding, training and funding is a problem that has led to the massive backlog of kits around the country, but she said that the stigma surrounding sexual assault has contributed to law enforcement’s unwillingness to test kits.
“We know that victims of sexual assault are blamed more than any other crime by law enforcement because they have a perception that the victim was doing something wrong or they don’t believe them,” Knecht said.
Southern Arizona Coalition Against Sexual Assault, SACASA, has tried to put funding and bureaucracy aside, so that it can focus on victims.
SACASA prioritizes victim’s mental and physical care after a assault has taken place, said Stephanie Green,Vice President of Nursing at CODAC Health.
“Many of the people we see and treat are homeless or disenfranchised,” Green said.
Through their partnership with Tucson Medical Center, SACASA won’t turn anyone always due to lack of funds or insurance.
When an assault takes place, a survivor will come to TMC’s Emergency Department or will be transported there by law enforcement. This is where SACASA comes in.
They dispatch a Sexual Assault Victim’s Advocate to the hospital to work with the survivor. This includes finding housing and transportation if necessary.
Survivors often have to leave their clothing and undergarments behind for the exam, so the Sexual Assault Victim’s Care Area contains clothes, as well as feminine products and food, among other things, to assist victims.
Victim’s Advocates will almost always meet the survivor in the Quiet Room of TMC’s Emergency Department before and after any examinations take place.
Green said everyone involved tries to minimize the victim’s time in the exam room.
A Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner is contracted through Tucson Medical Center to do the examination that begins with a verbal history before any physical examination. Examinations can take between one to six hours depending on the extent of the contact and injuries.
Green explained that it is out of her hands, the nurse’s hands, and TMC’s hands once they have handed off the SAK to law enforcement, but SACASA will continue providing care to the victim.
SACASA has a 24/7 Crisis Line at (520) 327–7273 or toll-free at (800) 400–1001.
Arizona Governor Doug Ducey has also taken action to improve sexual assault victim’s care and rights. In January of 2016, Gov. Ducey established the Arizona Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit Task Force.
According to the Arizona Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit Task Force Report, The Task Force is responsible for, “documenting the location of all untested sexual assault kits in Arizona, providing legislative recommendations to ensure every kit is tested in a timely manner, developing statewide protocols, and recommending a statewide tracking system for sexual assault kits.”
Maricopa County had the highest backlog statewide with 4,367 of the untested kits in Arizona, and received a Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, DANY Grant, for $1.9 million to examine previously untested SAKs.
DANY Grants, were announced under the Obama Administration to fund the elimination of the massive backlog of untested SAKs across the country.
Maricopa County Attorney Office’s has since been awarded $3.3 million of federal funding over two years to continue their work to analyze kits, re-engage survivors, and investigate and prosecute cases.
The funding has allowed for nearly 2,700 sexual assault kits to be tested in Maricopa County, 250 DNA profile matches, and seven new indictments, with three cases that have led to convictions and four other cases that are awaiting trial.
According to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, “This includes Antonio Ray Sullivan was already serving six years for burglary and sexual assault from 2011. The new charges led him to be sentenced to an additional 3.5 years and lifetime probation as a registered sex offender.”
The Tucson Police Department was also awarded a DANY grant of more than a million dollars for TPD’s Crime Lab to test 1,200 of 1,849 untested kits in Tucson, according to The Accountability Project.
Research has proven that testing unsubmitted SAKs is critical for law enforcement to identify and convict sexual predators with a history of serious violent offenses. According to a report by SAKI, “Testing of SAKs not only provides answers and justice for victims, but also helps increase overall public safety.”
The Department of Justice approved funding for case studies in Michigan to examine the cause of backlogs and eliminate their build up.
Through analyzing 11,000 previously untested SAKs in Detroit, Michigan, the backlog revealed more than 2,600 suspects and 818 identified serial rapists, resulting 273 cases being investigated and 130 convictions.
It is important to test backlogged SAKs and reopen cases because of sex offender’s high recidivism rate. According to the DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Sex offenders are about four times more likely than non-sex offenders to be arrested for another sex crime after their discharge from prison.”
Knecht applauded the initiatives working to eliminate statewide backlogs, but said that Arizona needs to focus on stopping a future build up from continuing and reoccurring.
“It’s really important that (Arizona) pass legislation that requires the testing of every newly collected kit that comes in now,” Knecht said. “The only way that this doesn’t happen again, is that every kit goes forward to a lab and tested within a certain amount of time.”
With state and federal funding, nearly 3,000 untested kits still remain in the state of Arizona.
Last year, Governor Ducey signed HB 2268 into law, which asserts that all rape kits must be tested in a timely manner and provides government agencies the funds to do so.
According to the bill summary, “HB 2268 requires health care facilities to notify law enforcement within 24 hours when a sexual assault kit is collected. It then mandates that law enforcement submit the kit to a crime lab to be tested within 15 days. The bill also requires annual reporting detailing the number of kits processed and explanations for any untested kits.”
In addition, Arizona has recently changed its law so that there is no statute of limitation for felony sexual offenses.