Virginia Launches Rape Kit Tracking System To Give Control Back To Survivors

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A new statewide sexual assault kit tracking system in Virginia aims to empower survivors and give greater transparency to how the state responds to sexual violence.

The system, announced Friday by Attorney General Mark Herring and the Department of Forensic Science (DFS), will enable survivors of sexual violence, along with forensic scientists, law enforcement agencies and hospitals to know the status and location of a PERK (physical evidence recovery kit) at any given time.

It's the latest effort by Herring to transform Virginia's response to sexual and domestic violence.

"In the past, survivors often had no idea whether their kit had actually been tested" Herring says. "And unfortunately and sadly, as we have found out, too often it hadn't been, which is really disrespectful to a survivor and really undermines public trust in the process."

Currently in its soft launch phase, the system will ultimately cost approximately $100,000, all of which is covered by a $2 million 2017 grant. It will be mandatory starting in July 2020.

Herring underscores that survivors can follow the status of their kit regardless of whether they wish to report the assault to law enforcement.

Linda Jackson, Director of the Virginia Department of Forensic Science, says that historically, her department would provide PERKs to hospitals and law enforcement around the state but would have no way of following up on them.

"Once we had given them out, there was no way to know where they were throughout the lifespan of an investigation," Jackson said.

But this new system will change that, she says.

The tracking system involves putting a unique bar code on the outside of every kit, so it can be scanned wherever it goes.

"It will note when we send the kits to hospitals, the hospitals will then note when they have collected evidence and which law enforcement agency they are sending it to, and then law enforcement will acknowledge that they have received it," Jackson says.

Survivors will be given a PIN by law enforcement and will be able to check the status of their kit online.

Jackson says privacy is a key concern of those involved in the tracking system, but stressed that there's no personally identifying information within the system.

"Survivors can feel certain their privacy is being protected," she says. "The only thing that would tie a kit to a case is the PERK tracking number, the kit's barcode."

If a survivor decides not to report the assault to law enforcement, his or her kit will be stored at the division of consolidated laboratories. Survivors will be given information about the date their kit is scheduled to be destroyed (anonymous kits are stored for two years in Virginia) and how to ask for an extension. Survivors can fill out a form to ask for the kit's maintenance to be extended an additional 10 years.

Claire Ponder Selib is the interim executive director at the National Organization for Victim Assistance, which provides training to victim advocates across the country and a victim assistance hotline for victims of all crime, including acts of sexual violence.

She calls this effort "an incredible and groundbreaking move in the state of Virginia." Ponder Selib began her career 25 years ago as a rape crisis victim advocate and says she has seen firsthand how challenging it can be for survivors of sexual violence to come forward to seek medical care and to report to law enforcement.

"Inherent in the trauma of sexual assault is that the control of the survivor is taken away," Ponder Selib says. She believes it's critical to empower survivors by restoring that control.

"The idea that we're giving control back to survivors to know where their kit is and to be able to track it throughout the process, along with the key first responders, is an important part of the healing process for survivors of sexual assault," Ponder Selib says.

Barbara Sprunt is a reporter in the WAMU newsroom.