Senator Rowden Secures Funding For Rape Kit Testing

JEFFERSON CITY, MO — Yesterday Senator Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, worked across party lines to secure $3 million in the state budget for the collection, testing, and tracking of sexual assault kits.

“Missouri’s backlog of untested rape kits has reached crisis levels,” said Rowden. “An estimated 19% of women experience sexual assault in their lifetime, yet less than 1% of rapists serve jail time for their actions.”

Rowden informed the committee that Kansas law enforcement officials found serial sexual offenders in sexual assault kit testing accounted for 38% of all offenses and 90% of all sexual offenses. Ohio officials found that one third of repeat offenders assault somebody they knew.

“I appreciate that Chairman Brown recognizes the seriousness of this issue. Eliminating this backlog of untested kits and establishing procedures to track kits moving forward has the potential to save lives, save money, and hold rapists accountable,” said Rowden.

According to the American Journal of Preventative Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the lifetime cost of rape on survivors is $122,461.

“Survivors of sexual assault crimes have a right to know where their rape kit is in the process of being tested,” said Rowden. “I look forward to working with the Attorney General and law enforcement to prosecute serial offenders and creating more transparency and relief for these survivors.”