New grant to help metro Atlanta law enforcement tackle sexual assault kit backlog

ATLANTA - Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' office and the Atlanta Police Department are joining forces to bring justice to hundreds of victims of sexual assault.

The two law enforcement agencies are working on a new initiative to combat a backlog of sexual assault kits.

Willis and Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum announced thecollaboration Thursday afternoon.

The metro Atlanta agencies have received a $2.5 million federal grant to test the 4,342 kits in storage at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

It also allows for a collaboration between the District Attorney's office and the APD. Two Atlanta police detectives will be assigned to work with the Fulton County DA's Sexual Assault Kit Initiative team.

The GBI has been working to make a dent in the number of backlogged sexual assault evidence kits in its labs.

The issue grabbed headlines back in 2016 when it was revealed that more than 3,000 untested rape kids were discovered "warehoused" at hospitals and in police evidence rooms across the state. State legislators passed a law requiring healthcare workers and law enforcement officers to turn them over to the GBI.

According to the GBI, they had 1,715 kits to process in April 2020. That number was down to just 380 in April 2022.

The state also launched a new sexual assault tracking system online, which was set up after state lawmakers passed a law in 2021 requiring the system to allow victims, advocates, and law enforcement authorities be able to track the progress of investigations.