A bill requiring law enforcement agencies to submit sexual assault kits to the state crime lab faster is getting support from the Sexual Assault Center operated by Family Services of Northeast Wisconsin.  The legislation requires health care professions to notify law enforcement officers within 24-hours of a reported assault.  Investigators would then have to forward sexual assault test kits to the crime lab within 72-hours.  Sexual Assault Center Program Manager Holli Fisher says having clear guidelines for faster testing is needed to avoid the massive backlog that delayed testing for years.
 

The bill also gives sexual assault survivors the needed time to recover and begin working with law enforcement officers.
 

The bill, which has bipartisan support, now goes to the State Assembly for further consideration.