Destroyed

This multi-year investigation examines how police departments across America disposed of evidence in rape investigations before cases were closed or statutes of limitation had expired.

CNN discovered that since 2010, police improperly disposed of rape kit evidence in at least 400 cases. The investigations themselves were flawed and incomplete- most of the kits were untested.

Photographed for CNN

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy is photographed at the prosecutor's office in Detroit, MI. Worthy is herself a rape survivor. She calls the destruction of rape kits a betrayal.
CEO and Academic Director at CHILD USA Marci Hamilton is photographed at the University of Pennsylvania where she is the Fox Family Pavilion Senior Fellow in Residence. Hamilton says children rarely report sexual abuse when it happens; when they do, “it’s
Dr. Steven Berkowitz is photographed at the University of Pennsylvania where he is Associate Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine and the director of the Penn Center for Youth and Family Trauma Response and Recovery in Philadelphi
Joanne Archambault is photographed in Chicago, IL. The former sex crimes investigator says police label victims uncooperative, but “they’re just dealing with survival.”
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