Ohio crime lab gets about 3,300 untested rape kits

8/2/2013

COLUMBUS — The state attorney general’s office has received nearly 3,300 untested rape kits from Ohio law enforcement agencies and found hundreds of matches in testing those kits for DNA.

Attorney General Mike DeWine says that Ohio’s crime lab has tested more than 1,300 of those kits for DNA, and about 400 resulted in a match.

DeWine mounted the effort to review untested rape kits in December 2011. To prevent delays in analyzing active cases, his office brought in four additional scientists.

The lab tests the oldest kits first because many of them are almost two decades old. Ohio law has a 20-year statute of limitations for rape.

DeWine says the results have helped law enforcement solve old cases and bring justice to victims of sexual assault.