HPD moves toward goal of testing 500 rape kits

Honolulu police have tested 137 rape kits out of a backlog of 1,512 and are aiming to have 500 tested before the year’s end, the Honolulu Police Department said Wednesday.

Assistant Chief Jerry Inouye, who heads the department’s Investigative Bureau, said during a Honolulu Police Commission meeting that the department already sent an additional 180 kits to be tested by outside parties — 150 to a private contractor and 30 to the FBI, at a cost of about $1,000 per kit.

He said HPD decided to outsource the tests to accelerate clearing the backlog.

Earlier this year, the state Legislature passed Act 207, which was signed by Gov. David Ige, mandating law enforcement agencies in Hawaii test 500 kits before the end of the year and submit reports on untested rape kits in inventory.

HPD is preparing to comply with the mandate, Inouye said. The department came under fire earlier this year after it revealed it had 1,500 untested rape kits, some dating back to about 1992 when DNA started to be used as evidence in criminal trials.

Maui, Hawaii and Kauai police departments have submitted results to the state on their rape kits, although only Maui met the state’s Sept. 1 deadline. HPD’s results were reported Wednesday by the Attorney General’s Office. A final report from the attorney general regarding statewide efforts is due to the Legislature by Dec. 1.

Inouye said HPD’s results were delayed by an extensive hand search of case evidence to find which cases contained a sex assault or rape kit. Rape kits include DNA evidence collected after an alleged sexual assault, during an hours-long medical evaluation of the victim.

Inouye said police prioritized the testing of rape kits prior to this year by testing only those from cases that were prosecuted. He said HPD is now supportive of the national movement to test all kits because offender information can be entered into a federal database even if there is no prosecution.

Sen. Laura Thielen asked the department to consider testing rape kits even when the suspect is known. She referenced a study from Cleveland that found about 51 percent of sexual assaults were tied to serial rapists.