WVTM 13 NEWS INVESTIGATORSRE A PUTTING A SERIOUS DENT INTO JEFFERSON COUNTY’S RAPE KIT BACKLOG IN 2018. WE BROKE THE STORY ABOUT NEARLY 4,000 SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS GOING UNTESTED WVTM 13’S JOHN PAPKE INVESTATIGES HOW MUCH PROGRESS IS BEING MADE TO BRING VICTIMS JUSTICE? THREE YEARS AGO. WE UNCOVERED A HUGE BACKLOG OF UNTESTED SEXLUA ASSAULT KITS IN JEFFERSON COUNTY NEARLY 4,000 TIDANG BACK TO 1985. JUST SITTING ON A SHELF SINCE THEN A SPECIAL TASKORCE F HAS SENT MORE THAN A THOUSAND OF THOSE KITS TO A LAB. WE’RE USING THE RESOURCES. WE HAD TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE KNOCKING DOWN THE BACKLOG AND MAKING SURE IT DOESN’T HAPPEN AGAIN AND SPEAKING OF RESOURCES. THANKS TO A GRANT LAST YEAR. THEY HIRED TO INVESTIGATORS AND AN ANALYST TO SPEED UP THE PROCESS WE HAVE. THE ABILITY TO GO TRACK PEOPLE DOWN DIFFERENTLYND A LIKE FIND PEOPLE AND AND CONTACT THEM AND MAKE SURE THAT TY'H’RE EVEN INTERESTED IN HEARING ABOUT THEIR CASE OR IN WHETHER OR NOT THEY WANT TO MOVE FORWARD SINCE OUR LAST UPDATE AARON GEIGER SEDGWICK SAYS THE NUMBE OFR HITS FROM THEIR KITS IN THE NATIONAL DNA DATABASE HAS DOUBLED UP TO 175 BY THIS SUMMER. PROGRAMS I PRODUCED CRIMINAL CHARGES AGAINST 10 SUSPECTS SO FAR. WE HAVE A HIGHER THAN THE NATIONAL AVERAGE RATE OF SERIAL OFFENDER HITS GEIGER SEDGWICK SAYS 30% OF JEFFERSON COUNTY’S DATABASE HITS ARE LINKED TO SERIAL OFFENDERS. THAT’S DOUBLE THE NATIONAL AVERAGE OF 14 PERCENT THAT INCLUDES JONATHAN LOCKETT HERE THE WORK OF THE SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT INITIATIVE TEAM HAS LINKED THE BIRMINGHAM MAN TO SEXUAL CRIMES AGAINST EIGHT DIFFENTRE VICTIMS BETWEEN EARLY 2019 AND THE END LAST YEAR AND WHILE VIE END LAST YEAR AND WHILE CTIMS FROM THE BACKLOG HAVE CHOSEN NOT TO PRESS CHARGES ONCE THEIR OFFENDER IS IDENTIFIED GEIGER SEDGWICK CLAIMS MANY ARE PURSUING LONG-AWAITED JUSTICE AND THEN THERE’S PEOPLE WHO HAVE SAID LIKE I’VE BEEN WAITING ALL THIS TIME AND THEN WE’VE GOT PELEOP THEY’RE LIKE OH, I THOUGHT I WAS FORGOTTEN ABOUT I’M SO GLAD TO KNOW THAT MY CASE IS GOING SOMEWHERE. HER TEAM IS SENDING 50 KITS TO THE LAB EACH MONTH AND HOPE TO ELIMINATE THE BACKLOG IN AUTBO FIVE Y