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posted by on Thursday April 13 2017, @09:03PM   Printer-friendly
from the when-in-doubt,-ask dept.

What do you do when you don't have the funding to address a perpetual backlog of unanalyzed rape kits? Ask drivers to foot the bill when applying for a driver's license:

Across the country, there's a backlog of kits containing potential evidence of sexual assaults. Victim advocates say the situation threatens public safety. Lawmakers in dozens of states are pushing for funding, and in Texas, one state representative has offered an innovative solution.

Thousands of rape kits sit sealed and untested in forensics labs and law enforcement offices in Texas. What's missing is state and local funding to pay to analyze the evidence in many of those kits.

If state Rep. Victoria Neave has her way, residents could help chip in. When Texans go to the Department of Public Safety office to apply for a driver's license, they'd be asked if they'd like to help the state pay to test DNA evidence from sexual assault cases — in the same way they're asked if they want to donate to support veterans or organ donation.

The Texas Department of Public Safety issues driver's licenses rather than the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.


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  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by HiThere on Friday April 14 2017, @01:03AM

    by HiThere (866) Subscriber Badge on Friday April 14 2017, @01:03AM (#493739) Journal

    There are arguments in favor of universal conscription, but it needs to actually be universal. When the poor are conscripted and the rich get out, it is, as you said, slavery. And when all are conscripted, but only the poor are endangered, it is also a form of slavery.

    The problem is, the ones who set policy are not endangered by the policies they set. Even if they were this would not be a complete solution, history is full of brutal and malicious generals who lead from the front, but they are less common than those who plan wars that don't endanger themselves or those they care for. Unfortunately, the highly skilled are a limited resource, so if you don't protect them your society is disadvantaged. And those in charge will always think of themselves as highly skilled.

    I don't see a good answer. The "volunteer army" sure isn't one. It's a bit more volunteer than if we had press gangs roaming the streets, but when areas are economically depressed, a "volunteer" isn't that much of a volunteer, and when recruits are lied to, calling them volunteers is a blatant lie in and of itself.

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