You’re disoriented, confused, and in pain. Unable to fully process what just happened, you reach for your phone and call the police. You tell them everything, still not willing to grasp that you were just sexually assaulted. Violated. You’re taken to the hospital and consent to a rape kit, which is almost as brutal as the assault itself. Months later, after hearing nothing about the status of your kit or your case, you reach out to the police again. Through one phone conversation, it becomes clear that your rape kit has been sitting on some shelf, forgotten and declared insignificant in the eyes of law enforcement. Your assault has officially become a part of the national rape-kit backlog. 

When a victim endures a sexual assault, their body becomes a crucial piece of evidence. If the assault is reported, the victim can choose to have medical professionals collect any DNA evidence left on their body by the offender. This evidence is then put into a rape kit. Although the DNA collected in these kits can be incredibly useful in rape cases, a backlog of thousands of kits has denied justice for far too many survivors. The national backlog of rape kits discourages victims to come forward to share their stories, sending the message that victims are not a priority. 

From lack of proper resources to law enforcement bias against sexual assault crimes, rape kits have begun to multiply, leaving us with the backlog we know today. In a courtroom, rape cases are rarely about proving that there was any physical or sexual contact between the victim and the offender. Instead, these cases become an issue of consent: if the victim gave their consent or if the victim was able to give their consent. While rape kits provide valuable information about whether there was physical harm done to the victim, they can not prove there was a problem with consent so these kits are rarely called on for evidence during trials. 

As of now, the exact number of untested rape kits is unknown but it's estimated to be tens of thousands. That means tens of thousands of sexual assault survivors have been, just like their rape kit, put on a shelf and disregarded by law enforcement. The Joyful Heart Foundation spoke with survivors of sexual assault, giving them the chance to share their stories. One survivor, Michelle, shared her experience of having a rape kit completed but never having it tested. According to her, going through the long, discomforting process only to have the kit fall victim to backlog added to her feelings of loss and trauma. 

Coming forward to report a sexual assault takes an immense amount of courage. The national backlog sends a very clear message that sexual assault victims are not a priority with law enforcement. This discourages victims from coming forward and sharing their stories, as they know they won’t be treated with the compassion and sincerity they deserve. Not only does this backlog discourage victims, but it emboldens offenders. How can we promise justice will be served if law enforcement continues to brush aside evidence and let the criminals slip away?

Advocacy groups, such as The Joyful Heart Foundation, have been working to push public policy that is directly aimed at discontinuing the backlog. The work of these groups has led different states to create policies that would prevent its continuation. The federal government has also granted states more money to compensate for a lack of manpower or proper resources. 

With every untested rape kit comes another victim who is discarded and stripped of justice. Ending the backlog would bring so many survivors one step closer to the healing they have been deprived of, eliminating the bias that has been built against sexual assault survivors and their stories. Still, there are a number of states with plenty of untested rape kits, leaving victims to wonder when, or if, justice will ever come. 

Works Cited

Chavez, Aida, and Cronkite News, The Arizona Republic. "Advocates: Rape-kit Backlog Will Discourage Victims, Enable Offenders." Arizona Republic, 28 Oct. 2016, www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-contributor/2016/10/28/advocates-rape-kit-backlog-discourage-victims-enable-offenders/92895466/.

Homepage | ENDTHEBACKLOG, www.endthebacklog.org/.

"TVO." TVO | Current Affairs, Documentaries and Education, www.tvo.org/article/why-rape-kits-alone-arent-sufficient-to-address-the-legal-side-of-sexual-assault.