DNA can be a critical tool for solving crimes. New laws that require police departments to collect DNA from convicts and arrestees on crimes ranging from burglary to homicide have led to a backlog of untested DNA in Nevada.
More than 4,000 untested rape kits currently sit on the shelf in Southern Nevada. The community did, however, receive some funding recently to address the problems. The Department of Justice awarded the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department $650,000 to address the DNA backlog.
The expansion of DNA testing has made it harder for police labs to keep up with the number of samples coming in. Why is it so important to test rape kits? And how can that evidence be used to solves -- and prevent -- sexual assault crimes?
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Natasha Alexenko, founder, Natasha's Justice Project
Lawrence Kobilinsky, chair, Department of Sciences, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
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