Working closely with the Joyful Heart Foundation, Representative
Jones was able to secure a series of reforms in the omnibus criminal justice reform bill Governor Baker signed into law last month. Sexual assault
victims will soon be able to follow the status of their kits through a statewide
database being set up within the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security
(EOPSS). This database will allow victims to track their kits from the
time they are collected and transferred to law enforcement, through the testing
and storage process.
The bill also requires police departments to clear their existing
backlog of untested kits associated with a reported crime. Similar
testing conducted in other states has helped police to identify hundreds of
serial rapists connected with previously unsolved crimes.
You can watch Representative Jones’ interview with WCVB’s Karen
Anderson by playing the video posted here.
