Nebraska

The state of Nebraska has achieved two of the six pillars of rape kit reform: victims’ rights to know the status of their kits and establishment of a rape kit tracking system.

Reform Status
Some Reform
Testing Status
Unknown
Untested Kits
Now 493*
Then 1500**
* In 2023, Lincoln reported 493 untested kits, while Omaha reported that their backlog has been cleared. This makes a total of at least 493 untested kits in Nebraska.
** According to a media report by the Omaha World-Herald there were 1500 untested kits in Nebraska in 2018.

Pillar Count

2/6 Pillars
The state of Nebraska has achieved two of the six pillars of rape kit reform: victims’ right to know the status of their kit and establishment of a rape kit tracking system.
Statewide Inventory

No, the state has not carried out an inventory.

  • Is the inventory recurring? n/a
  • Are law enforcement agencies and/or labs required to participate in the inventory? n/a
  • Does the law require to document the date of when each kit was collected? n/a
  • Does the law require a reason to be given as to why the kit was not submitted to a crime lab for testing? n/a
  • Does the law require untested kits to be counted? n/a
Test Backlogged Kits

No, the state has not committed to testing its backlogged kits.

  • Does the law require law enforcement to submit all untested kits, including those past the statute of limitation, within a certain deadline? n/a
  • Does the law set a deadline for the crime laboratory to complete analysis once a kit has been submitted to the lab? n/a
  • Does the law require kits past the statute of limitations to be sent in for testing? n/a
  • Does the law allow public crime labs to outsource unsubmitted kits? n/a
Test New Kits

No, the state has not mandated testing.

  • According to the law, how much time after a rape kit examination do hospitals have to notify law enforcement that a kit is ready to be picked up? n/a
  • According to the law, after being notified, within what time frame is law enforcement required to pick up the kit? n/a
  • According to the law, after picking the kit up, within what time frame is law enforcement required to submit the kit to the lab? n/a
  • According to the law, after receiving the kit, within what time frame is the lab required to test the kit? n/a
  • Does the law allow crime labs to outsource kits for testing if they are unable to meet the deadline? n/a
Implement Tracking System

Yes, tracking system in use.

Nebraska established a rape kit tracking system through non-legislative means.

Victim's Right To Know

Yes, the state has granted victims the right to notice and be informed on the status of their kit.

  • Do victims have the right to receive information of the location, testing date, and testing results of their kit? Yes
  • Do victims have the right to be informed when there is any change in the status of their case? Yes
  • Do victims have the right to receive notification before destruction of their kit? Yes
  • Are victims granted further preservation of the kit or its probative contents? Yes
  • Are victims provided with the contact information for the designated liaison(s) at the corresponding law enforcement agency at the time that a kit is collected? No
  • Do victims have the right to receive a physical document identifying their rights under law? Yes
Fund Reform

No, the state has not allocated any of its own funds towards reform.

n/a

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State Reform Timeline

2024
Bill: Enacted
LB870 enacted in Nebraska

In 2024, legislators in Nebraska enacted LB870. This law provides additional rights to victims of sexual assault. Under this piece of legislation, victims have the right to be notified 60-days before destruction, the right to further preservation of their kit for an additional 20 years, and the right to be informed when there is any change in the status of the victim’s case, including if a case has been closed or reopened. Read our letter of support.

2023
News Article
Omaha clears its backlog of untested kits

In 2023, a media report by KETV found that Omaha police cleared their backlog of untested reported kits.

2022
Inventory
968 untested kits in Omaha and Lincoln

In 2022, Lincoln reported 485 untested kits, while Omaha reported 483 untested kits, this makes a total of at least 968 untested kits in Nebraska.

2021
Inventory
2125 untested kits uncovered in the City of Lincoln

According to a media report by the City of Lincoln there were 2125 untested kits in Nebraska in 2021.

Other
Nebraska's tracking system goes live

In 2021, Nebraska’s tracking system went live.

Inventory
2125 kits found in Lincoln and Omaha

As a result of the inventory law LB881, passed in 2020, the City of Lincoln reported a total of 425 untested sexual assault evidence collection kits, while the City of Omaha uncovered a total of 1,700 untested kits. The extent of the backlog in the state outside of these two cities remains unknown.

2020
Bill: Enacted
LB43 and LB881 enacted in Nebraska

In August 2020, Governor Pete Ricketts signed Legislative Bills 43 and 881. LB43 provides survivors with the right to prompt analysis of sexual assault evidence, to know the status and analysis of their kits, and to have DNA profiles uploaded to state and local databases. In addition, the bill requires that medical providers notify law enforcement of the existence of a completed rape kit, and requires law enforcement to collect the kit and store the evidence for either the statute of limitations applicable to the sexual assault or 20 years, whichever is longer. LB881 requires cities with populations of 100,000 or more (currently, Lincoln and Omaha) to report each year on their inventory of untested rape kits. Since, given this population requirement, only two cities will participate in the inventory process, Nebraska has not achieved the full inventory pillar. To do so, it must audit all entities in the state that collect or store rape kits.

Bill: Enacted
LB881 enacted in Nebraska

In 2020, legislators introduced LB945, which would have required cities with populations of 100,000 or more (currently, Lincoln and Omaha) to report each year their current inventory of untested sexual assault kits. The bill was later added to LB881. Joyful Heart recommends that all law enforcement agencies in a state report the untested kits they have in their possession and have suggested such an amendment. Read our letter of support.

Funding
$966,882 awarded in Nebraska

In 2020, BJA awarded the city of Omaha an additional $966,882 to sustain its work on rape kit reform.

Non-Legislative Reform
Nebraska established Track-Kit

In 2020, Nebraska started using Track-Kit, a statewide tracking system for all sexual assault kits.

2018
Funding
$1,901,640 awarded in Nebraska

In 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) awarded the city of Omaha $1,901,640 to test kits, investigate and prosecute cases, and re-engage survivors.

2017
Bill: Failed
LB1126 failed in Nebraska

In 2017, Nebraska legislators introduced LB1126, which would have mandated the swift testing of all newly collected rape kits, and granted sexual assault survivors the right to notice regarding rape kit testing status and results. This bill failed to pass.

2016
Bill: Enacted
LB843 enacted in Nebraska

In 2016, the Nebraska Legislature passed LB843, which ensures that victims are not charged for their sexual assault forensic medical examinations. The bill also allowed for the purchase of a single type of kit for the state, and created the position of a nurse examiner administrator to oversee the program and protocol for the state.

2014
Accountability
Accountability Project issued records request in Nebraska

In 2014, The Accountability Project issued an open records request to bring the number of untested kits in Omaha to light. Omaha has not fully responded to our November 2014 records request. As of August 2015, the Omaha Police Department (OPD) had 1,271 rape kits in custody that were collected between 2000 and 2014. OPD stated that “no record exists” regarding the testing status of these kits, and OPD took no additional measures to attempt to provide this information. As such, we were unable to ascertain the status of these 1,271 rape kits.

Accountability

We have issued public records requests, through the Freedom of Information Act, to the following jurisdictions in Nebraska to discover whether they possess any untested rape kits.
Target
Request Year
Untested kits discovered
Incomplete information received
Omaha, NE
2014
Unknown

More from Nebraska

Nebraska Passes Law Enhancing Survivor’s Rights, Mandating Inventories of Rape Kits in Select Cities
The Joyful Heart Foundation (Joyful Heart), a national leader in the effort to reform rape kit policies across the country, today applauded the Nebraska state legislature’s passage of new rape kit reforms, including a sweeping survivor’s rights bill that grants survivors of sexual assault the right to know about the status of their rape kit. Legislative Bills 43 and 881 have now been signed into law by Governor Pete Ricketts.
2023 End The Backlog Legislative Update
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Rape Kit Reform in 2022
In the 2022 session, we rebuilt our website endthebacklog.org, wrote an academic book chapter and “The State of the Backlog” report, while successfully advocating for rape kit reform across the country. “The State of the Backlog” report provides a birds-eye view of rape kit reform field, focusing on what we have started, where we have […]