NCJ Number
252541
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 57 Dated: July-August 2018 Pages: 106-115
Date Published
August 2018
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This is a case study of an early adopter jurisdiction in addressing its large number of previously unsubmitted sexual assault kits (SAKs), and it is the first study to describe and quantify an unsubmitted SAK initiative's process and outcomes from testing to disposition.
Abstract
The article presents a process map that details the progression of a SAK and provides descriptive statistics on which cases proceed or fail to proceed, as well as the time and resources expended. At a third of the way through the initiative to test, investigate, and prosecute all unsubmitted SAKs, Cuyahoga County had DNA hits for 39 percent of all previously unsubmitted SAKs, almost 1,000 new DNA profiles added to the federal DNA databank, indictments on 25 percent of all completed investigations, and convictions on 76 percent of all indicted cases. Results also highlight the large number of serial sex offenders that have been identified, and implications are discussed for promising practices and policy changes resulting from the initiative. These findings provide a framework for other jurisdictions in addressing their unsubmitted SAKs for cross-site comparisons and forecasting; and they indicate the value of testing unsubmitted SAKs nationwide and investigating all SAKs, including stranger and non-stranger SAKs and those without a DNA hit. (publisher abstract modified)