After a state audit showed Lake County with the third highest number of untested rape kits, local agencies said they want to commit to completing all future tests.
Earlier this month, Indiana State Police released a report, spurred by a state Senate resolution last legislative session, to examine how many rape kits are untested across Indiana. The report showed 2,560 kits were not tested for various reasons.
Lake County had the third highest number with 238 kits, St. Joseph County had 478 and Marion County had 256, according to the report, which showed Porter County with 16 untested kits.
"My hope is that as a community in Lake County, that we can make a commitment to test every kit from this day forward," said Kelly Vates, executive director of Fair Haven, a Lake County rape crisis center. "Because why go back? Why add to the problem?"
Submitting data to the audit was voluntary, and not all Lake County agencies participated, the report said. Of those that did, Hammond had the highest number, with 194 kits, followed by 31 in East Chicago and 22 in Merrillville, according to data from the Lake County Prosecutor's Office.
"There are several reasons why these kits go untested," said Lt. Steve Kellogg, Hammond police spokesman. "The most common is when a victim refuses to prosecute the suspect."
Some kits are not tested because an investigation reveals there was no crime committed or it was a false report, according to the audit. Others go untested because court proceedings or charges were possible without that, the audit shows.
In her 17 years working as a sexual assault victim advocate, Vates said the predominant reason she sees is whether a case goes to court.
"If there's a likelihood that this case will go to court, I think that kit will be tested," she said. "If there isn't a high likelihood, the kit usually sits."
Officials have to consider how to allocate their resources and their budget, Vates noted.
"Testing kits cost money," she said, adding that Hammond is "a very proactive city" in investigating claims and making sure victims receive services.
"The Hammond Police Department has tested, or is on the schedule to test, every evidence kit involving an active sexual assault investigation," Kellogg said.
The state police lab examines kits from local departments, which are limited to the number of kits submitted in scheduling blocks so they don't overload the laboratory, he said.
Hammond police currently submit up to 10 kits per week, and Kellogg said "this should expeditiously clear our inventory of untested kits."
Hammond's size and population contribute to the number of kits, and some date back more than 10 years, beyond the statute of limitations in Indiana, he said.
"Police are not obligated to keep these kits, but we have chosen to do so in the event this evidence could assist with another investigation in the future," Kellogg said.
Vates said that's important because testing can help with a current case as well as past and future cases by adding DNA samples to the national database for tracking offenders.
Testing kits is vital, Vates said, since victims "will willingly, after a horrific event, go to a hospital and will endure an incredibly uncomfortable and invasive process" to complete these kits.
"They've done everything we ask them to do in the system," she said. Then, to not test the kits, "what does that say to a victim?"