Approximately 9,000 rape kits are sitting dormant in law enforcement offices all across California — potentially never to be tested. Survivors of sexual assault endure a four- to six-hour process to collect the DNA of their attackers with no guarantee that the evidence will ever be tested or used to reach a conviction.
AB 41 is a bill that would require a reporting process from law enforcement offices, mandating that they track rape kits and give a reason for those that are left untested. The bill is a key step in ensuring that law enforcement is held accountable to testing these kits, while also giving the state a clearer idea of what resources are necessary to ensure that all kits are tested in the future. It passed through the Assembly and was put on hold in order to go over any potential financial concerns, but the Appropriations Committee can drive it forward. We need to make our voices heard: justice for survivors of sexual assault is worth the financial cost.