South Raleigh News

The North Carolina Department of Justice hosted a two-day symposium this week, bringing together law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and victim advocates to discuss strategies for investigating and prosecuting cold case sexual assaults. The event provided criminal justice professionals with insights on organizing caseloads, prosecuting cold cases, working with survivors, and leveraging information about connected crimes to solve cases. Presenters included representatives from the State Bureau of Investigation, the UNC School of Government, the Durham District Attorney’s Office, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, and the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office.

“We know that as we continue to get hits on old cases, law enforcement is going to get leads in cases that were once cold,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “We want law enforcement and prosecutors to have the best understanding of the science of DNA and how to approach victims years later without re-traumatizing them. As we all continue to work together, I look forward to us solving more cold cases and making our communities safer.”

In April, Attorney General Stein announced that North Carolina had ended its backlog of untested older sexual assault kits. More than 11,850 kits have been tested or are in the process of being tested. From those kits, 5,087 samples have been entered into the CODIS DNA database, resulting in 2,760 matches. Law enforcement has made 115 arrests based on these matches; many involve reopening cold cases from years past.

As evidence continues to be tested by the State Crime Lab and older cases are revisited by law enforcement agencies across North Carolina, arrests in decades-old sexual assault cases are increasing. In March, Raleigh Police arrested Tracy Lamont Thompson for incidents dating back to 1998, 2007, and 2009. He faces charges including first-degree kidnapping and second-degree rape. Last August saw a jury in New Hanover County convict Freddie Anthony Jackson for a kidnapping and rape committed in 1995.

More information on the symposium is available here.

###