More than 1,200 rape kit deadlines missed by Fort Worth crime lab in 5 years

Fort Worth – The Fort Worth Police Department has confirmed that its crime lab department has failed to meet more than 1,200 state deadlines for processing rape kits over the past five years.

In October, FOX 4 reporters discovered that more than 900 rape cases were overdue and had not been processed, with some cases dating back months.

Under Texas state law, law enforcement must submit evidence to a laboratory for analysis no later than 30 days after receipt.

“This is a completely unacceptable situation,” Police Chief Neil Noakes said at a press conference on the subject. “We understand the urgency to correct this issue and ensure it does not happen again. We are exploring all available options.”

Since Chief Noakes’ statement in October, 226 of the overdue kits have been processed.

Fort Worth Rape Kit Testing

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Fort Worth Rape Kit Test

City officials said the cause of the delay was understaffing in the crime lab’s biology unit. The unit currently has five vacancies, with only two employees responsible for testing sexual assault kits. Personnel issues date back to 2019.

Department officials said they recently interviewed 11 certified biologists and are extending job offers to candidates in an effort to speed up the process. The job posting will remain open until all positions are filled to improve the efficiency of processing rape kits once the backlog is cleared.

“The survivors of these crimes deserve this from us, and we will accept no less from ourselves,” Noakes said.

The ministry expects the backlog to be cleared by April 2025.