City Controller Wendy Greuel has taken a look at the Los Angeles Police Department's approach to tackling a backlog of over 7,000 untested rape kits in recent months, and has found that there is much room for improvement in how the LAPD handles this kind of evidence. more ›

Denim Day sounds like fun and games but those wearing jeans today are making more than a fashion statement. Denim Day in LA, and around the country, is part of an awareness campaign about rape and sexual violence stemming from an incident in "1999 when an Italian court overturned a rape conviction partially because the victim was wearing tight jeans - something the justices reasoned the suspect couldn't have removed without the victim's help," reports the Daily News. more ›

If all goes to plan at today's regularly scheduled meeting of the Los Angeles City Council, the massive backlog of DNA rape kits sitting on LAPD shelves--around 7,500 in Fall 2008--should be eliminated by June. A motion introduced by Council President Eric Garcetti and to be vote upon this morning seeks to hire and outsource enough personnel to complete the Spring-time goal. more ›

Thousands of rape kits waiting to be DNA tested and the ominous threat that 40,000 prisoners will be released onto the streets are expected to be dominating issues at today's Public Safety Committee of the Los Angeles City Council. more ›

Thousands of rape kits still remain untested, finds a follow-up to a year-old audit that revealed some 7,500 rape kits sat untested on the shelves of LAPD labs. City Controller Wendy Greuel plans to release the the full findings tomorrow morning. Her office said today that the backlog has been reduced to 65%. However, Greuel says the Department’s record keeping is inconsistent, making it difficult to give entirely accurate numbers. In early October, it was reported that 3,157 kits were left to go with the full backlog completion due in the summer of 2011. more ›

It was about a year ago when the public was outraged over some 7,500 rape kits sitting on the shelves of LAPD criminalist labs untested. Fueled by the anger and a city audit, the LAPD announced they would begin going through all the kits. Today, 3,157 kits are left to go with the full backlog completed in the summer of 2011, according to the LA Times more ›