Ted Poe: “One of the worst things that can happen to any of us is to lose their voice, and I have lost mine. I know some of the…”

“One of the worst things that can happen to any of us is to lose their voice, and I have lost mine. I know some of the Democrats are glad about that. But I want to say this on behalf of the SAFER Act. There are, in our country, on shelves, in warehouses, and in law enforcement office buildings rape kits that have never been examined. That is shameful. And everybody is to blame, from the Federal Government to local government. It is shameful because victims--and I knew a lot of them at the courthouse as a judge--don't know who committed this crime against them, and we have the ability to tell them, but we don't because of bureaucratic incompetence. These haven't been examined. They have the right to know who sexually assaulted them. Also, there are criminals running loose, who have never been prosecuted, because these rape kits have never been analyzed. And, yes, there are people incarcerated who are innocent, and the rape kit can prove their innocence. It is important that we pass the SAFER Act. Get those sexual assault kits analyzed. There are no more excuses. Mr. Speaker, in 1984, Michelle was raped at knifepoint by two men who broke into her home. They blindfolded her, tied her up with a phone cord, and gagged tit her before sexually assaulting her. During the assault, they laughed and bragged that they had been getting away with committing this crime for seven years. Much to Michelle's surprise, they left without ending her life.…”