For Immediate Release: April 9, 2024Contact: Olivia Hall, media@endthebacklog.org NEW YORK – Today, the Joyful Heart Foundation applauds North Carolina for clearing their rape kit backlog of over 15,000 kits. Each kit represents a survivor, their experience, and the possibility for them to heal. Testing these kits signals to each North Carolinian that the Attorney […]
The Joyful Heart Foundation, which has for years advocated for rape kit reform in North Carolina, today praised Governor Roy Cooper’s signing of the Survivor Act (H.B. 29) into law. For the first time, this will mandate the testing of the more than 15,000 untested rape kits in local law enforcement storage and expedite the handling of future kits to help ensure a backlog does not occur again.
Following a state audit that revealed 15,160 untested rape kits in law enforcement custody across the state, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has signed H945 into law. The new law mandates the development of a system to track sexual assault evidence kits across the state.
Today’s guest author is Lieutenant John Somerindyke from the Fayetteville, North Carolina Police Department (FPD). As a 2015 Sexual Assault Kit Initiative grantee, FPD was tasked with testing backlogged rape kits, notifying victims, and investigating cases. Here, Lt. Somerindyke shares FPD’s efforts to establish a victim notification protocol to re-engage survivors in the criminal justice […]
Prepares to Testify before U.S. Senate Committee FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 19, 2015CONTACT: Melissa Schwartz, media@joyfulheartfoundation.org NEW YORK – As part of its ongoing effort to identify the number of untested rape kits across the United States, the Joyful Heart Foundation today released information obtained from the following cities: • Charlotte, North Carolina (1,019 kits) […]
