Minnesota receives 2nd $2 million grant to address untested rape kits
RICHFIELD, OH - January 27: A sexual assault evidence collection kit in the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation Laboratory on January 27, 2016, in Richfield, Ohio. The lab receives specimens in sexual assault cases to analyze for DNA profiles which (Ann Hermes/The Christian Science Monitor via Getty Image)
(FOX 9) - Minnesota has received a second $2 million grant to address its backlog of untested rape kits.
The Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded the 2019 Sexual Assault Kit Initiative grant to the state Department of Public Safety Office of Justice Programs to address sexual assault kit testing, victim advocacy and investigations.
The grant will go to five different entities working collaboratively to address the issue of untested kits. A 2015 inventory identified 3,482 untested sexual assault kits at law enforcement agencies statewide, according to DPS.
The state received its first $2 million grant in 2018, which started the Minnesota Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Project. Since then, the BCA has received more than 250 previously unsubmitted kits from local law enforcement agencies for testing.
DPS said the grant will not cover the additional untested rape kits recently located by the Minneapolis Police Department.
Last month, city officials announced the police department discovered it had 1,700 untested rape kits spanning 30 years as of 2015. DPS said discussions are ongoing to identify resources to address the additional kits.