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Final day of hearings in untested sexual assault kits leaves survivors waiting for a decision

Survivors, attorney anticipate Judge Higgins decision as they wrap motions on Friday

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — On Friday, Judge Higgins heard final motions from attorneys in Janet Doe v. The City of Memphis and survivors sat in the back of the courtroom waiting for a ruling that never came.

“The testimony has certainly demonstrated that there was a scandal, a scandal of epic proportions that went on for decades,” Attorney Gary Smith said. “The sex crimes unit disregarded these victims thousands upon thousands upon thousands of times with no justification.”

Smith insists that no matter Judge Higgins decision, this case will not go down without a fight.

“If the class is certified, they’ve got 12,000 plus claimants. If the class is not certified, then we’re gonna be adding many, many, many more individual plaintiffs,” Smith said. “This case will not end either way.”

Survivors say they’ll go on with additional lawsuits if the outcome is not in their favor – saying that if proper testing began when their assault kits were turned in, many lives could have been spared.

“It just happened, just in the last several months where a jogger in Memphis was murdered,” Debby Dalhoff said. “Had they properly, properly tested the rape kit from her perpetrator that happened a year earlier, Eliza Fletcher would be alive today.”

Though individual lawsuits against the city could be a high price point – Smith said the city has already spent far more money than they initially would have had to pay the one survivor listed in the lawsuit – protected victim Janet Doe.

“The information that we know is that they’ve already spent $2 million defending this case,” Smith said. “If we go back to their position that $300,000 applies to all these claimants, then you have to ask the city ‘if you really thought what you owed in this case was $300,000, why have you spent over $2 million defending it?' It makes no economic sense.”

Whether the class will be certified or not, and all other motions are now in Judge Higgins hands. As the hearing finished, Judge Higgins said she anticipates getting back with everyone within two weeks with her decisions.

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