Release date:
2/28/2018
(RALEIGH) Attorney General Josh Stein, along with State Crime Lab Director John Byrd, today announced the results of a statewide inventory of untested sexual assault evidence collection kits (SAECKs) in law enforcement custody across the state. Session Law 2017-57 required every law enforcement agency in North Carolina to report to the State Crime Lab the number of untested kits it has in its custody. The Department of Justice compiled the results of this inventory in a report sent to the General Assembly today.
“Testing sexual assault kits is critical to hold criminals accountable, secure justice for victims, and prevent crime,” said Attorney General Stein. “Now that we know how many untested kits there are, the state can work to develop and implement a plan to test these kits. Victims of sexual assault deserve no less.” The inventory found that at the end of 2017, there were 15,160 untested sexual assault kits in North Carolina in the custody of local law enforcement agencies.
The Department of Justice made the following recommendations for improving the process by which victims of sexual assault get the justice they deserve:
- Develop a protocol to test all kits reported to law enforcement going forward
- Institute a statewide SAECK tracking system
- Test all reported kits currently in law enforcement custody
The full report can be viewed here. A fact sheet can be viewed here.
Contact:
Laura Brewer (919) 716-6484
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