MassLive

Massachusetts is moving forward with an $8 million investment to test all rape kits in police custody following the passage of last year’s criminal justice bill, which included significant measures in rape kit reform.

The passage of the state’s budget bill means that Massachusetts has now enacted all six pillars of reform recommended by the Joyful Heart Foundation.

The Massachusetts House of Representatives approved a proposal to overhaul the state's policy for tracking and testing rape kits.

The proposal was adopted as an amendment to the criminal justice reform bill passed Tuesday night. House Minority Leader Bradley Jones Jr. proposed the amendment, which calls for the creation of a rape kit tracking system with the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security.

Michelle Bowdler will never know the identities of the two men who broke into her Boston apartment and raped her more than 30 years ago, even though they may have left crucial DNA evidence behind.