Show-Me State Times

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced today that his office awarded SAFE Kit Initiative Service Awards to area law enforcement agencies and community partners for their dedication towards the eradication of untested sexual assault kits throughout the state.

"The Attorney General’s Office has made great progress in the fight to clear the backlog of untested sexual assault kits throughout the state, but we haven’t done it alone,”  said Attorney General Bailey. “Because of the dedication of these men and women, the SAFE Kit Initiative continues to take great strides for victims who had the courage to come forward and tell their stories.  My office looks forward to partnering with these groups to obtain justice for victims in the days ahead.”

In 2019, the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) launched the SAFE Kit Initiative to inventory, test, and track the state’s high number of untested sexual assault kits with the ultimate goal of clearing the state’s backlog and obtaining justice for victims.

Working with the AGO, local law enforcement agencies and community partners have worked diligently to clear the backlog of untested sexual assault kits. Presented by the AGO, the SAFE Kit Initiative Service Award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions in leadership, management and operation, education, agency assistance, prosecution, and administrative support in their commitment toward eliminating untested sexual assault kits throughout the state.

The following have been selected as recipients of the SAFE Kit Initiative Service Award:

• Springfield Police Department
• Boone County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
• St. François County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
• Platte County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
• Wayne Johnson and Darren Collins, AGO General Services Staff
• Detective Paul Gatewood, Property Room Manager for St. Joseph Police Department
• Marcy Stiefel of the Missouri State Highway Patrol Crime Lab – Springfield
• Stacey Bolinger, Asst. Director of the Missouri State Highway Patrol Crime Lab
• Detective Renee Wilbarger of the Columbia Police Department
• Victoria Pickering, Director of Advocacy at the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA)
• Kathy Howard, Retired RN, Forensic Nursing Coordinator at St. Louis University Hospital Center for Forensic Nursing Excellence

First Assistant Attorney General Ray Wagner was present for the awards ceremony. “What the SAFE Kit Initiative has yielded for the state of Missouri is truly immeasurable,” said Wagner. “The work these brave men and women do, the comfort they’re giving to victims of sexual assault as they work to clear the backlog, is extraordinary. Our office thanks them for all they have done and all they will continue to do.”

Of the 5,246 untested, reported sexual assault kits that have been identified for testing, 4,476 untested, reported kits have been submitted under the SAFE Kit Initiative to private labs for DNA testing. The remaining kits will be tested with federal grant money under the 2022 SAKI grant.

The SAFE Kit Initiative has received more than 400 CODIS (Combined DNA Index System) hits, which led to 3 felony convictions in Missouri. More than 10 cases are pending within the court system.

Judge M. Keithley Williams leads the SAFE Kit Initiative for the Attorney General’s Office.

Original source can be found here.