Four years ago, Minneapolis police said they had 194 untested rape kits. They now say they have more than 1,700 untested rape kits, some dating back to the 1990s. Police Chief Medaria Arradondo says he does not know why so many rape kits have been left untested. But Mike Sauro, who used to run the sex crimes unit, defended the department, saying that many of the kits uncovered in the 2015 audit were “restricted,” meaning the alleged victim was not cooperating with police. “We reviewed all the kits from the year 2000 all the way up to 2015,” he said. “People have this misconception that all kits have to be and should be tested, and that’s just not true. … If you don’t have an official police report made, we can’t enter them into the national database, so we can’t test them.”
Founded in 1968, Reason is the magazine of free minds and free markets. We produce hard-hitting independent journalism on civil liberties, politics, technology, culture, policy, and commerce. Reason exists outside of the left/right echo chamber. Our goal is to deliver fresh, unbiased information and insights to our readers, viewers, and listeners every day. Visit https://reason.com