October 26, 2021
Dear Senators Timothy Kaine and Mark Warner:
I want to ask for your leadership and commitment to ending the rape kit backlog. Due to an 85% increased demand for testing across the country, I am respectfully requesting that the Fiscal Year 2021 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies appropriations bill include $151 million for the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program, as well as full funding for the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI).
According to the Department of Justice, sexual violence is pervasive across the U.S.; every 73 seconds an American is sexually assaulted. Often, DNA evidence is the only lead law enforcement has to identify the perpetrator.
This is why fully funding the Debbie Smith Act and SAKI is essential to public safety. Forty-two percent of all matches in the FBI’s DNA database, CODIS, are a result of Debbie Smith Act funding.
Helping survivors find closure and peace of mind, in addition to the number of serial rapists that are apprehended using DNA, makes fully funding these programs essential.
Sincerely,
James Landrith