America's rape kit backlog was a national scandal. A decade later, problems persist.

A decade ago, a USA TODAY investigation helped reveal the national backlog of rape kits.

Evidence from thousands of sexual assaults had been left to sit – untested – in law enforcement storage. In time, the backlog grew to hundreds of thousands of kits. 

Since 2015, a federal program aimed at addressing the backlog has doled out nearly $350 million to states and local jurisdictions. Officials promised the money would put rapists behind bars and give victims long-awaited answers. 

But in many of those cases, justice remains elusive, a new USA TODAY investigation has found.

The team behind the project

Reporting and analysis: Tricia L. Nadolny, Nick Penzenstadler, Jayme Fraser, Gina Barton, Dian Zhang, Savannah Kuchar, Lee Rood

Editing: Amy Pyle, Doug Caruso, Josh Susong

Illustrations: Ariana Torrey 

Design and art direction: Andrea Brunty

Graphics: Ramon Padilla, Javier Zarracina, Carlie Procell, Shawn J. Sullivan

Photography: Matthew Dae Smith, Abigail Dollins, Bryan Terry, Max Correa, Romain Blanquart, Megan Smith, Aaron Martinez, Eva Marie Uzcategui, Jasper Colt

Photo editing: Camille Fine

Videography: Jasper Colt, Megan Smith, Lamar Salter

Audience editing and SEO: Nikol Mudrova, Sydney Bergan, Alan Nguyen, Ashley Lewis, Jessica Hilo, Tim Gardner