At Joyful Heart, we are a proud partner in the effort to create funding opportunities, like the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), for jurisdictions seeking to address their untested rape kit backlogs. For four years, we have engaged with members of Congress to secure funding for SAKI to support the work being done across the […]
The untested rape kit backlog denies justice for sexual assault survivors and communities. For every untested kit, there is a perpetrator who is not held accountable for their crime, free to re-offend and commit other crimes. Keith Asberry Jr., 33, of Antioch, California is one of those offenders. Asberry sexually assaulted at least five women […]
In April, we provided a snapshot of rape kit reform across the country. Since then, many state legislatures have wrapped up for the year. Let’s take a look at how rape kit reform has fared across the country and which states are enacting Joyful Heart’s six pillars. New Rape Kit Reform Laws Governors have signed […]
Our guest authors, Doreen Jokerst and Maria Pettolina, hail from Parker, Colorado. Doreen is the Support Services Commander for the Parker Police Department. She has 19 years experience in law enforcement working in various divisions including patrol, investigations, and professional standards. Maria is the Crime Scene and Evidence Manager with the Parker Police Department. She […]
Joyful Heart is leading a national campaign with an ambitious goal—to pass comprehensive rape kit reform legislation in all 50 states. Enacting Joyful Heart’s six pillars is the only way to ensure that neither discretion nor resources can be used any longer as an excuse to deny sexual assault survivors the justice they deserve. Since […]
Our guest author today is Natasha Alexenko, a survivor, activist, and educator who is working to change the criminal justice system’s response to sexual assault. In 2011, Natasha started Natasha’s Justice Project, a nonprofit dedicated to processing the untested sexual assault kits in the United States. Here, she reflects on being a survivor during National […]
Sarah Haacke Byrd testified today before the California Senate Committee on Public Safety in support of rape kit reform legislation. Joyful Heart staff and California stakeholders have worked tirelessly in support of Senate Bill 1449, which is being heard by the Committee today. S.B. 1449 would mandate the swift submission and testing of all newly […]
March 29, 2018 Our guest authors today are from the research team of the Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education at Case Western Reserve University: Rachel Lovell, PhD; Mendel Singer, PhD; Daniel Flannery, PhD; and Misty Luminais, PhD. Here they explain why testing rape kits is beneficial for sexual assault survivors and for […]
2017 was a year of unprecedented progress for our campaign to end the backlog of untested rape kits through state legislative reform. Lawmakers in 34 states introduced 77 bills embracing our six pillars of rape kit reform—more than ever before. And they were more successful than ever: 18 rape kit reform laws and four resolutions […]
