Legislation passed to address rape kit backlog in U.S.

President Joe Biden signed a bill Tuesday that will address the backlog of rape kits in the U.S. by opening funding for public crime laboratories to process DNA evidence from rapes and other violent crimes.

The Debbie Smith Act reauthorizes the DNA Backlog Elimination Program through 2029.

Biden was an original co-sponsor of the bill in 2004. Since its initial passage in 2004, funding from the Debbie Smith Act has resulted in more than 300,000 hits on the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).

CODIS is a national DNA information repository managed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This repository allows state and local laboratories to store and compare DNA profiles from crime scenes and convicted perpetrators.

Rep. Larry Bucshon, R-IN-8, Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-IN-5, and Rep. Andre Carson, D-IN-7, are listed as co-sponsors of the bill.

The representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Missouri Republican Representative Ann Wagner sponsored the bill.

“Survivors of rape and sexual assault deserve justice, period. My Debbie Smith Act will provide significant support to law enforcement so they can eliminate the backlog of untested rape kits, identify perpetrators of rape and sexual assault, and put them in jail where they belong,” Wagner said in a news release. “We have a solemn and moral responsibility to support the survivors of sexual violence as they recover from these horrific crimes. I am proud to have their backs here in Congress and will continue to work with law enforcement and survivors to ensure they get the justice they deserve.”

RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization, works to prevent sexual violence, help survivors and help organizations improve their sexual assault prevention and response programs.

“Imagine undergoing a forensic exam in the aftermath of experiencing the trauma of sexual violence, only to have that evidence sit on a shelf,” RAINN President and Founder Scott Berkowitz said in a news release. “This is the reality for too many survivors across the nation and the Debbie Smith Act has been integral in helping survivors get evidence tested and pursue justice.”

According to a 2019 study by Michigan State University Professor Rebecca Campbell, 39% of sexual offenders identified in the CODIS were serial offenders with a range of two to 15 sexual assaults each. Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn sponsored the Senate version of the bill.

“Examining DNA evidence is a critical step in achieving justice for sexual assault survivors, but many law enforcement agencies don’t have the resources to work through the rape kit backlog in a timely manner,” Cornyn said in a news release. “This legislation will empower law enforcement to solve these heinous crimes and give survivors the closure they deserve, and I’m glad to see it become law.”

Advocate Debbie Smith,  for whom the bill is named, said her heart was filled with gratitude following the passage of the bill.

“Thank you, Congress, for coming together and passing the Debbie Smith Act once again. My hope is that you understand that this legislation is one of the best when it comes to serving victims of sexual assault and other violent crimes,” Smith said in a news release.

In 1989, Smith was sexually assaulted by a stranger who broke into her home. While she had a sexual assault forensic exam, the DNA evidence was unanalyzed for five years.

In 1994, the forensic evidence was finally entered into the FBI’s national database and yielded a “hit,” identifying the perpetrator. He was brought to trial and eventually convicted for the rape of Smith.

“It responds to questions that were thought insoluble, it identifies those who would remain nameless, and it exonerates those who have been wrongly accused,” Smith said in a news release. “This bill solves crimes from the past while working in the present and building for the future. But most of all, it offers justice, resolution, and peace for victims.”