In an op-ed for Independent Journal Review this morning, Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-49) and Congresswoman Mimi Walters (CA-45) point to the growing rape-kit backlog and recent high-profile sexual assault cases to make the case for why these important reforms should be passed into law as soon as possible.
The full piece is available here and excerpts are available below.
“National outrage over the handling of recent high-profile sexual assault cases have spurred universities into action as leaders have looked for ways to transform how sexual assault survivors are treated.”
“If society is going to get serious about changing the way we treat these terrible crimes, it will take more than our universities. It will require everyone, at all levels of society and government to get involved.”
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“Under current law, basic rights that protect sexual assault survivors, and the extent to which they can attain justice, vary greatly between each state. Only six states – Illinois, Texas, Colorado, California, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio – require law enforcement to test rape kits. Sadly, this leads to mind-boggling statistics like the fact that as many as 400,000 untested rape kits currently sit in evidence rooms. Sexual assault survivors deserve far better.”
“Most state law enforcement agencies do not have written guidelines or procedures for processing sex-crime evidence. These decisions are often left to the discretion of investigating officers, causing dramatic inconsistencies in how evidence is handled in cases that could help bring some of these perpetrators to justice.”
“Perhaps most shockingly, in every state – California included – police are legally allowed to destroy a rape kit before the statute of limitations expires.”
“These rights seem so simple that it is inexplicable how they are not already a well-established part of our federal criminal justice system.”
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“Just last week, the House of Representatives unanimously approved the Survivors’ Bill of Rights to make necessary reforms to the federal criminal justice system. The Senate has already passed these vital reforms, and now, it is our hope the President will sign these reforms into law expeditiously.”