New Tool To Track Sexual Assault Kits Launched In PA

State officials, law enforcement agencies, and victim advocates announced Tuesday the launch of the state’s first statewide sexual assault kit tracking system.

The web-based platform, which is called Track-Kit, is being piloted in Erie, Lancaster, and York counties ahead of a full rollout in all 67 Pennsylvania counties. The statewide launch is scheduled for December.

Created as part of the bipartisan-approved Act 122, which was signed into law by Gov. Josh Shapiro in 2024, the system sets up a way to account for sexual assault evidence.

Preserving forensic evidence through medical examinations is vital to holding offenders to justice, but testing times can be lengthy. Automated tracking looks, according to officials, to eliminate delays, improve efficiency, and provide transparency throughout the criminal justice process.

Last decade, there was outrage after it came to light there was a backlog of untested rape kits across the nation. Pennsylvania authorities reported in 2015 that there were more than 3,000 untested rape kits in the state.

State and local law enforcement officials received more funding and pressure to move through the backlog, bringing the backlog to just 94 kits in 2020, according to then-Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.

Between 2023 and 2025, an average of 3,800 rape cases were reported annually to law enforcement across Pennsylvania, with fewer than half resolved.

The project joins the Pennsylvania State Police, the Department of Health, and the Pennsylvania Coalition to Advance Respect (PCAR) to reduce backlogged evidence while delivering technical support and training to hospitals, rape crisis programs, and law enforcement.

“As leaders, we need to do everything we can to help victims feel safe and whole again,” said Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, a Democrat who serves as chair of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD). “If a victim is able to summon the strength to go through the process of getting a sexual assault examination, they deserve to know their kit is being handled with care and attention, and that their case is a priority.”

Davis said the system is meant to keep survivors informed and assist in bringing more cases to resolution.

“This new tracking system will not only keep victims informed but it will help them get the justice they deserve,” Davis said.

Development and implementation of Track-Kit were supported by a $2.5 million grant secured by PCCD from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen said healthcare facilities are often a survivor’s initial point of contact.

Prior to the law and tracking tool, survivors often received no updates regarding the status of their evidence, officials said.

“Survivors and the public should be confident that evidence is handled properly, and that every step in the process is clearly defined,” Bogen said. “When someone comes forward after an assault, they deserve more than a response. They deserve a system they can trust.”

Joyce Lukima, coalition director and COO of PCAR, showcased that the National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative has led to the testing of more than 100,000 previously unsubmitted kits nationwide.

“Survivors and advocates pushed until those rooms were opened,” Lukima said. “They called for kits to be counted and tested. They demanded a better way to account for new evidence.”

Lukima added that equitable access to information is critical across the state.

“A survivor in a rural county deserves the same care and the same access to information as a survivor in Philadelphia or Pittsburgh,” she said.

Victim advocates and healthcare providers stated that the system restores communication and control to survivors during a vulnerable period.

“There is already so much for a survivor to navigate, and knowing what happens next should not add to that burden,” said Kat Gastineau, director of education and advocacy at YWCA Lancaster. “Having this resource means we can offer survivors greater transparency and better care.”

Emily Huggins, a forensic nurse examiner in Pennsylvania, said the tool gives agency to patients while giving healthcare personnel insight into post-hospital processing.

“We’ve taken this opportunity to really educate our patients and share with them the opportunity that they have to regain choice in how they want to proceed with their situation when that had been once taken away from them,” Huggins said.

Law enforcement officials said multi-agency cooperation is a core component of the system.

“A tracking system is only helpful if it works in the real world as people use it day in and day out,” said Capt. Matthew Irvin, of the York City Police Department.

Major Colette Smith, director of the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Forensic Services, stressed the need for unified operations.

“We are aware that no single agency can provide all of the services a survivor may need,” Smith said. “That is why the collaboration between law enforcement, laboratories, prosecutors, advocates, and specialized service providers is imperative.”

The announcement comes amid ongoing worries over the funding stability for victim service providers, which have received state support.

Programs across Pennsylvania face uncertainty tied to federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding, which has led some organizations to reduce staff, limit outreach, and pare down essential services, according to Davis.

The lieutenant governor restated calls to Congress to stabilize VOCA funding after past calls for support sent last year and last week.