Sexual assault kit tracking software goes live in Alaska

The Alaska Department of Public Safety’s Sexual Assault Kit Tracking System was recently activated, giving sexual assault survivors across the state the ability to securely track the status of their kit online.

According to a recent press release from the Alaska Department of Public Safety, those who have been sexually assaulted can now utilize this new tool to track the progress of their kit in the least invasive and traumatic way available.

“My administration was proud to eliminate the backlog of untested sexual assault kits shortly after taking office and we are providing the Department of Public Safety, Law, and Corrections with the resources that they need to make our state a safer place,” Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy stated in the press release. “While there is still more work to do to address the scourge of sexual assault that plagues our state, this is a positive step in the right direction.”

DPS worked with Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) nurses, the Alaska Scientific Crime Detection Lab, law enforcement across the state, prosecutors, and survivors while developing the new system to ensure the system is tailored to Alaska’s unique needs.

“After the State of Alaska completed the processing of our untested sexual assault kits from across the state, one of the recommendations from the working group was to enable this trauma informed tracking system for survivors,” Alaska Department of Public Safety Commissioner James Cockrell stated in the press release. “This new system will allow a survivor that has submitted a kit to view the status and location of their kit without contacting the law enforcement officer investigating the crime.”

DPS began implementing this system regionally towards the beginning of June, and all the sexual assault kits will be trackable through this new system.

Sexual assault survivors will receive instructions on how to access the system when the sexual assault kit evidence is collected by a specially trained medical professional.

For more information, visit alaska.gov/CDVSA/Services/Sexual-Assault/Sexual-Assault.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com