NYC rape kit delays skyrocket as Medical Examiner lab struggles with backlog
EXCLUSIVE: NYC rape kit delays skyrocket in Bronx & Brooklyn
A FOX 5 investigation reveals an alarming surge in rape kit processing times across New York City, leaving sexual assault survivors waiting months—and sometimes up to a year—for critical DNA test results. FOX 5 NY's Kelly Kennedy reports.
NEW YORK - A FOX 5 NY investigation reveals that wait times for rape kit processing results across New York City have surged dramatically, leaving sexual assault survivors waiting months – and sometimes up to a full year – for critical DNA evidence.
NYC rape kit processing backlog
What we know:
Records exclusively obtained by FOX 5 NY from the NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner show that rape kit turnaround times in both Brooklyn and the Bronx exploded between 2018 and 2025.
In the Bronx, average turnaround times climbed from 35 days in 2018 to 106 days in 2025. In Brooklyn, average processing times rose from 35 days to 121 days.
Cases taking six months to a year to process skyrocketed from 49 to 209 between 2024 and 2025, with delays in Brooklyn surging by 417% in just one year.
Survivors, advocates demand change
What they're saying:
Karen Carroll, an emergency room nurse and rape survivor who walked her attending physician through her own evidence collection exam in 1994, went on to lead the Bronx Sexual Assault Response Team at NYC Health + Hospitals for eight years.
"I'm disappointed because I would like to believe that from 2018 to 2026, things are getting better, not worse," Carroll said. "When you've been traumatized and you're waiting for information, a minute can seem like an hour."
Survivor Desdemona Dallas, who was assaulted in the Bronx in 2010, had their case closed due to an initial lack of evidence. Eight years later, authorities reopened the case after secondary DNA was uncovered from evidence that had gone untested for years.
"Feeling that your story and your experience isn't being taken seriously is so hurtful and harmful," Dallas said.
City blames lab contamination, software glitches
The other side:
The NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner attributed the rising delays to two key operational issues, including an ongoing investigation into an August 2024 lab contamination incident and technical glitches tied to a July 2025 software rollout.
While OCME stated that high-profile cases can be expedited by police and that evidence processing continued throughout these disruptions, city officials have yet to provide a target date for restoring normal lab processing times.
The Source: The story is based on records obtained from the NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner and interviews with Karen Carroll and Desdemona Dallas.