Boyle Calls for Increased Funding to Eliminate Rape Kit Backlog

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Brendan F. Boyle (PA-13) led 33 bipartisan Members of Congress in calling for increased funding for the Department of Justice's Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. Developed and launched in 2015, the Initiative provides funding through a $41 million competitive grant program to help local jurisdictions reduce the backlog of rape kits that have never been submitted to a crime lab.

"The amount of rape kits that have sat on a shelf, untested, unable to bring justice to victims of a horrendous crime is a tragedy and a national crisis," said Boyle. "Victims of rape and sexual assault must relive their pain in order to have their DNA tested at a law enforcement agency. What many victims do not realize is that their DNA kits can sometimes lie in wait on a shelf for months, even years, before ever being sent to the appropriate crime labs to be tested. I believe Congress must provide law enforcement greater funding in order to reduce the backlog, prevent it from happening again, and bring justice to victims."

The goal of the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative is the creation of a coordinated community response that ensures just resolution to rape and sexual assault cases whenever possible through a victim-centered approach. Increased funding can build the capacities of jurisdictions to alleviate current backlogs and prevent conditions that lead to high backlogs in the future. Boyle has been committed to addressing this issue since his tenure as a Pennsylvania state representative where he led the effort to require timely testing of rape kits and reporting of backlogged kits to the state.

The full text of Boyle's letter can be found here.

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