Rape kits are finally being tested and women are finally being given a chance to see justice

[southernhybrid]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/12/nyregion/rape-kit-tests.html

By February 2017, Maisha Sudbeck had made peace with the idea she would never get justice. It had been five years since she was raped in Tucson by a man she had met online. The police had brushed the case off as a he-said-she-said standoff. For years, her rape evidence kit had sat untested. With two children and a new marriage, she had moved on with her life.

Then a detective knocked on her door.

The detective said a grant from the Manhattan district attorney’s office had helped the Tucson authorities clear a backlog of untested rape kits, which preserve the DNA evidence left by an attacker. After five years, Ms. Sudbeck’s kit had finally been tested, the detective said. And the police had found a match in a database of people with criminal records: a man named Nathan Loebe.

“My chapter was reopened,” Ms. Sudbeck said. “Having my kit finally tested was a catalyst for hope.”

Ms. Sudbeck’s case is one of thousands that have gotten a second look from investigators since the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., committed $38 million in forfeiture money to help other jurisdictions test rape kits. Since the grants began being distributed in 2015, the evidence kits have led to 165 prosecutions in cases that were all but forgotten. So far, 64 of those have resulted in convictions.

Some of the men had raped numerous women, but because the rape kits had never been tested, these men weren't even charged. This has to change and it's good to see that money is finally being obtained so that rape victims have a chance to see justice. I knew this was a problem but I had no idea how extensive this was a problem had become.

 

[Tigers!]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/12/nyregion/rape-kit-tests.html

By February 2017, Maisha Sudbeck had made peace with the idea she would never get justice. It had been five years since she was raped in Tucson by a man she had met online. The police had brushed the case off as a he-said-she-said standoff. For years, her rape evidence kit had sat untested. With two children and a new marriage, she had moved on with her life.

Then a detective knocked on her door.

The detective said a grant from the Manhattan district attorney’s office had helped the Tucson authorities clear a backlog of untested rape kits, which preserve the DNA evidence left by an attacker. After five years, Ms. Sudbeck’s kit had finally been tested, the detective said. And the police had found a match in a database of people with criminal records: a man named Nathan Loebe.

“My chapter was reopened,” Ms. Sudbeck said. “Having my kit finally tested was a catalyst for hope.”

Ms. Sudbeck’s case is one of thousands that have gotten a second look from investigators since the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., committed $38 million in forfeiture money to help other jurisdictions test rape kits. Since the grants began being distributed in 2015, the evidence kits have led to 165 prosecutions in cases that were all but forgotten. So far, 64 of those have resulted in convictions.

Some of the men had raped numerous women, but because the rape kits had never been tested, these men weren't even charged. This has to change and it's good to see that money is finally being obtained so that rape victims have a chance to see justice. I knew this was a problem but I had no idea how extensive this was a problem had become.

Such a backlog is unacceptable.
How can justice be done if kits are ignored or take so long to process?

I wonder what is the delay in Australia?

 

[southernhybrid]

I have no idea if this is just an American problem. I've read before that rape kits often go untested, but I had no idea how serious this problem was until I read the linked article. It's crazy.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

Well, if they don't take money away from local law enforcement so they'd have the resources to do all of these, how would anyone afford tax cuts for billionaires?