(WSIL) -- The number of pending sexual assault forensic kits older than 180 days in Illinois has reached zero. This is down from a backlog of 1,815 sexual assault forensic assignments that were pending longer than 180 days in March of 2019.
Illinois State Police (ISP) utilized a variety of strategies to reduce turnaround time, including ramping up the use of forensic technologies and robotics, and hiring additional forensic scientists .
The Illinois , which was passed by the Illinois General Assembly and went into effect September 1, 2010, required the analysis of sexual assault evidence after receipt of all necessary evidence and standards to be completed within 180 days � if ISP had “sufficient resources.� This marks the first time since the Act passed that the State of Illinois was able to completely comply with this statute.
Over the past two years, ISP has reduced its total forensic backlog by approximately 72%.
ISP launched a publicly available web-based dashboard to provide information on processing times and backlogs, which is available on the . ISP has also implemented an online  that allows survivors of sexual assault to monitor their evidence online throughout the entire process, from collection at the hospital, through law enforcement pick-up and submission to the forensic lab, and lastly to the State’s Attorney’s office where final results are received.
