Attorney General Secures Grant To Test Sexual Assault Evidence Kits

AbuseGuardian.com reports on testing which is about to begin on more than 2,000 sexual assault evidence kits. Attorney General Mark Herring announced that his office and the Department of Forensic Science will be moving forward with those plans.

The kits are currently held by 65 law enforcement agencies and will be picked up in the next couple of weeks from various locations to be shipped to the lab for testing. It is expected that the results of the kits will be available in 6-8 weeks. he first kits to be submitted will be from Virginia Beach and Fairfax County, which include evidence dating back to 1988. The Commonwealth finalized the contract with Bode Cellmark Forensics to complete the testing in their Northern Virginia facility.

The Attorney General was able to secure a $1.4 million grant as part of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance’s $38 million initiative to test 56,000 PERKs (physical evidence recovery kits) in 20 states. These kits contain evidence collected from victims at hospitals or crisis centers during exams following a sexual assault. The DNA contained in the PERKs may help to identify suspects, solve crimes across the country, convict perpetrators, and exonerate the innocent. The state law allows local agencies to destroy untested kits; yet, thankfully, many facilities have opted to retain them in the hopes that they will eventually be tested and used to build a case. Attorney General Mark Herring has made PERK testing a part of his ongoing efforts to prevent crimes of sexual assault and support the victims of those crimes.

According to RAINN, (Rape Abuse and Incest National Network) 68% of sexual assault crimes go unreported to police. Of the reported crimes, only 2% of rapists will ever go to prison, and every 107 seconds a sexual assault will occur in the United States. This makes testing the DNA evidence even more crucial to preventing future crimes.

Brian Kent, Esq. of Laffey Bucci Kent, the firm behind AbuseGuardian.com, understands the seriousness of sexual abuse allegations. Mr. Kent states: “One of the most difficult challenges confronting abuse victims is facing the reality of what happened.” His firm is devoted to protecting the best interests of the victims. They are currently representing several clients in claims of sexual assault.

For more information on this release, or to ask questions regarding sexual assault claims, contact Attorney Brian Kent by calling 866-577-2786.