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PAVSA’s SMART program paving the way for future generations
— Nyah Adams, WDIO, Dec 4, 2023
Program to Aid Victims of Sexual Assault, or PAVSA, is a nonprofit rape crisis center that helps to aid victims, survivors and second hand survivors of sexual assault. They first opened their doors in 1975 when a small group of women were determined to combat the issue of sexual assault in the greater Duluth community.
DNA evidence leads to arrest of Smith County man in connection with two rapes in 2005
— Zak Wellerman, CBS 19, Dec 1, 2023
"DNA evidence has led to the arrest of a man accused of raping two women in Tyler nearly 20 years ago.
According to the Tyler Police Department, Jimmie Earl Gamble Jr, 40, of Smith County, was charged Wednesday on two counts of sexual assault. He remains in the Smith County Jail on bonds totaling $600,000.
The police department then thanked the Texas Rangers, the DPS lab, Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, CODIS Familial Search, the Department of Justice and Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) for their assistance in bringing this case to a conclusion."
Two new rape charges for Fayetteville man accused in series of sexual assaults
— Joe Jurney, CBS 17, Dec 1, 2023
"A Fayetteville man is facing two new charges of rape in a cold case from 2015.
Christopher James McMillan, 39, was arrested by the Fayetteville Police Department’s Cold Case Sexual Assault Unit on Thursday. He is also charged with first-degree sexual offense and first-degree kidnapping.
Utilizing funds from the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s FY2015 National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative grant, the victim’s sexual assault kit was outsourced to a private lab for forensic biology testing. Fayetteville police detectives investigated the case, but eventually, the case went unsolved due to a lack of investigative leads."
17 years later, DNA leads to second arrest in reported sexual assault of Utah teen
— Jordan Miller, Salt Lake Tribune, Nov 16, 2023
"Seventeen years after a girl told police she was kidnapped and raped, a second suspect has been charged in the alleged attack — thanks to advancement in DNA technology that ultimately produced a match, Salt Lake County prosecutors say.
Twelve years would pass before the sexual assault kit was tested in 2018 through the national Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. A match soon came back for Frank P. Benavidez, who had pleaded guilty to murder in late 2009 and remains incarcerated in Utah, according to the documents."
Serial rapist caught after more than 20 years
— Christine Fonville, The Champion Newspaper, Nov 10, 2023
"Through the work of the Georgia Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (GASAKI) Task Force, which was formed in 2018 and created in partnership with the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) as part of a multi-year, multi-million-dollar federal grant, the cold case was finally solved, stated officials.
“The GASAKI Task Force addresses the downstream investigations and prosecutions of cold case sexual assaults that have resulted from testing of previously untested sexual assault kits or any cold case sexual assault,” stated a press release from the GASAKI Task Force."
Man charged with 1998 rape in Raleigh after long-delayed test of DNA evidence
— WRAL News, Nov 7, 2023
"Evidence against King surfaced in September as part North Carolina's Sexual Assault Kit Initiative.
In 2019, the state received $2 million in funding to test previously un-submitted sexual assault kits, investigate and prosecute the associated cases.
Few sexual assault kits remain untested in NC, data shows. "This is an initiative that started in 2019 [and] thousands of kits have been tested across the state," said Wake County's District Attorney Lorrin Freeman. "It's unfortunate it's been that long to be able to bring these cases.""
Tulsa Police make progress in testing old rape kits
— Shae Rozzi, Fox 23, Nov 6, 2023
"FOX23 Evening Anchor Shae Rozzi follows up on the rape kit testing backlog in Oklahoma.
She first told you about in 2016. At that time, TPD was just starting the process of applying for federal grants to test previously untested rape kits for DNA. Since then, the department has received grants in 2018 and 2021 totaling around $4 million to spend on testing old sexual assault kits."
AG Platkin Announces $2 Million in Federal Funding to Offer Survivors of Sexual Assault a Way to Track the Progress of Their Case
— Office of the Attorney General – Matthew J. Platkin, Nov 3, 2023
"Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced the receipt of $2 million in competitive federal funding to establish an advanced tracking system for the state’s Sexual Assault Forensic Exam (SAFE) Kits. SAFE Kits are used to preserve physical evidence collected from medical forensic examinations conducted by qualified nurses after an individual has experienced an act of sexual violence. This endeavor is part of an ongoing commitment to provide victims of sexual abuse with support and transparency in navigating the criminal justice process."
