An editorial from The Herald-Dispatch
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — It was five years ago that the National Institute of Justice revealed a widespread problem with rape investigations.
Although most sexual assault victims provide physical evidence during medical exams after being attacked, hundreds of thousands of those “rape kits” were never tested. In other words, any DNA evidence that might tie their case to an offender or other cases had never been analyzed or entered into national crime databases.
In Ohio, Attorney General Mike DeWine took the lead in correcting the problem in the Buckeye State, identifying 13,000 untested kits and testing more than 11,000 of those. Many other states, including Kentucky have made progress as well, including passing legislation to set clear standards to make sure kits are tested in a timely manner going forward.
But West Virginia has been slow to get started, as reporter Courtney Hessler detailed in a special report Sunday in The Herald-Dispatch.
While a partnership between the Marshall University Forensic Science Center and local police has helped catch up Cabell County with impressive results, the state is just starting to inventory the extent of the problem for 16 counties, and there is no timeline for the 37 other counties in the state. The Mountain State now ranks among the 20 states that have done the least on this issue, according to the End The Backlog group that is tracking progress across the country.
It is time to put together a plan to inventory the untested kits, test them and pass legislation to set standards for handling rape kits in the future. Those steps will help bring offenders to justice before they strike again.
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