As efforts continue to eliminate Utah’s backlog of untested sexual assault kits, state officials announced Tuesday that a new federal grant will help them bring more support to victims statewide.
A federal Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) grant allowed officials three years ago to start a pilot program in Salt Lake County that allowed victims whose sexual assault kits had previously been untested to call a victim advocate for updates on their case and access a therapeutic treatment fund, among other resources.
The grant also provided funding for police, prosecutors and others to closely review those Salt Lake County cases for the potential for prosecution.