State representatives decided Monday to allocate surplus money from their budget to the state police crime lab to test 3,100 rape kits in hopes of finding the serial killer.
House Speaker Charles DeWitt, D-Lecompte, said during the past three to four years the house accumulated $650,000 in its budget.
DeWitt said it was his decision to give the crime lab money. He said he wanted to make sure the rape kits are tested first.
Since the identification of a serial killer in the Baton Rouge area, questions were raised about a number of untested rape kits, but Lt. William Davis, spokesman for Louisiana State Police, said the kits were tested for semen and blood but not DNA.
“We can take it a step further and compare to see if there’s a link with any suspects who might have done multiple rapes,” Davis said.
Four women in Baton Rouge and one woman in Lafayette have been linked to the serial killer by DNA evidence.
The families of the serial killer victims were present when DeWitt made the announcement.
Sterling Colomb, victim Trinesha Dene Colomb’s brother, said he is glad the House gave money to test the kits because they may give police more information.
“If his DNA is in one of those kits, then police may be able to go to the victim and get an ID on him,” Colomb said.
DeWitt said they may “get lucky” if they test the kits and find the person responsible for the murders.
“We want to let people know this is a priority in the state,” DeWitt said.
Davis said the money will be used to test some of the 3,100 rape kits at about $600 per kit.
He said the money will be used for processing the kit, technology and manpower. The kits will be tested starting with sexual assault cases, followed by homicides and violent crimes.
He said the length of time to test each kit will depend on how many samples are contained in each kit and the condition of the samples.
“There is no way to put a day or time,” Davis said.
He said police are determining which state police crime labs to send the kits to. He said they want to distribute the kits to different crime labs within the state so they do not “swamp” one lab.
DeWitt said there is about $250,000 in the general budget that might be added to the fund if it is approved. He said State Police also are applying for federal grants to finance more rape kit testing.