2015 SAKI Project

The National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) provides funding to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies, and prosecutor’s offices to support multidisciplinary community response teams engaged in the comprehensive reform of jurisdictions’ approaches to sexual assault cases resulting from evidence found in previously unsubmitted sexual assault kits (SAKs) - i.e. those SAKs that have never been submitted to a crime laboratory.

The goal of the SAKI is the creation of a coordinated community response that ensures just resolution to these cases whenever possible through a victim-centered approach, as well as to build jurisdictions’ capacity to prevent the development of conditions that lead to high numbers of unsubmitted SAKs in the future. The holistic program provides jurisdictions with resources to address their unsubmitted SAK issue, including support to inventory, test, and track SAKs; create and report performance metrics; access necessary training to increase effectiveness in addressing the complex issues associated with these cases and engage in multidisciplinary policy development, implementation, and coordination; and improve practices related to investigation, prosecution, and victim engagement and support in connection with evidence and cases resulting from the testing process.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation will use this 2015 SAKI award to address the issue of untested SAKs on a statewide level while considering the unique obstacles faced by stakeholder communities. The goals of the project include identifying the underlying factors contributing to the accumulation of SAKs; consider strategies to address testing of the previously unsubmitted SAKs; adequately develop and implement evidence-based model policies, best practices, and protocols at a statewide level that will be consistently applied in the various stakeholder communities; and to promote greater efficiency within the criminal justice system while ensuring victims have the support and resources they need from the time their evidence is collected until the case is resolved. The anticipated outcomes of this funding include the development and delivery of training curriculums and model policy to law enforcement, victim advocacy, and SANE/SART communities; refining the SAK collection and submission procedures; establishing SAK testing priorities, dictated by case facts, to be adopted and consistently applied within the forensic laboratories; the development of a pre and post collection SAK inventory system; and the development of a system by where victims can easily access the status of their SAK and case in the criminal justice system.

CA/NCF