170 rape kits, 1 rape prosecution: New SFPD data shows sexual assault cases stalling
Almost every day from January to June of this year, someone walked into the emergency room of San Francisco General Hospital and reported that they’d been sexually assaulted.
On each occasion, the person was taken to a private exam room, asked to undress, and thoroughly examined by a specialized forensic nurse, their body swabbed for DNA. On some days this year, as many as four people came to the hospital for a rape kit.
In total, 170 sexual assault victims subjected themselves to a rape-kit exam in San Francisco through the first six months of 2026. Yet as of October, the San Francisco Police Department had made only 11 arrests based on those alleged sexual assaults, and only one of the cases is being prosecuted as a sex crime.
Most rape survivors are told by medical professionals and victims rights advocates that the evidence collected during a rape-kit exam can make or break a police investigation, and that an attacker’s DNA may be the only way to lead to any semblance of justice. However, in San Francisco, that has usually not been the case.
According to the most recent data from the SFPD and district attorney, out of the scores of cases that have necessitated rape kits this year, just two suspects are being prosecuted — and only one for attempted forcible rape. The other is facing weapons and drug charges.
The ability of San Francisco police to investigate sex crime cases has become a charged political issue, leading to an intense hearing Oct. 8 at the Board of Supervisors chamber. During that meeting, SFPD Chief Derrick Lew apologized for the department’s dismal arrest record and agreed to a slew of reforms in how it handles rape and sexual assault cases — including investigating cases before labeling them inactive, increased supervision, trauma-informed training, and an annual audit of cases.
The hearing followed a July investigation by The Standard, which found that the share of rape cases the SFPD solves has fallen by more than half over the past decade. Last year, the SFPD made an arrest in, or otherwise closed, just 14% of its rape cases — half the national rate of 28%, according to data reported to the FBI. Over the past five years, San Francisco cleared rape cases at the lowest rate of any California county with more than half a million residents, according to the state Department of Justice.
The first half of 2026 shows the same pattern of stalled cases and insufficient investigation.
Since 2016, the SFPD has been required to publish twice-yearly reports on its handling of rape-kit cases, but had failed to do so until The Standard requested the data this spring. The department is also required by city ordinance to submit its reports at a Police Commission meeting two times a year. Stacy Youngblood, secretary of the Police Commission, said the department’s presentation is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 21.
“The SFPD takes sexual assault cases extremely seriously, and our investigators work tirelessly on every case, which are our highest priority,” said spokesperson Evan Sernoffsky.
“Every survivor deserves a complete investigation into their case,” said a spokesperson from the district attorney’s office. “Our office reviews every case law enforcement presents to us, and we do not decline cases lightly. We are committed to pursuing sexual assault cases and ensuring survivors have the support they need throughout the process.”
Fast exams, slow investigations
A sexual assault forensic exam, commonly called a rape kit, is an invasive, hours-long procedure of extracting evidence from a victim’s body. State guidelines (opens in new tab) from the California Department of Justice recommend that victims of sexual assault go to the hospital for an exam as soon as possible, and to not wait more than five days.
Over the first half of the year, victims in San Francisco predominantly followed state advice — on average, rape exams were performed less than two days after an alleged assault, and 98% were completed within five days, according to police data. Only three waited additional time, the longest being two weeks.
Meanwhile, police investigations moved far more slowly. It took an average of 31 days from a rape-kit exam to the case being assigned to an investigator with the Special Victims Unit, which handles all sexual assault allegations, according to police records. Roughly a third of cases were assigned more than 40 days after the exam.
One victim reported an assault on Feb. 1 and had the rape exam that day. The case wasn’t assigned to an SVU investigator until June 30, nearly five months later.
Thirty-two cases had yet to be assigned to an SVU investigator at the time of the report. The oldest of these was from January. National standards set by the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative recommend that cases be assigned to investigators within 48 hours, a directive that matches the SFPD’s policy.
“When a victim reports a sexual assault, SFPD promptly assigns an investigator and begins investigating the case,” said Sernoffsky, noting the exception of cases in which the victim declined to speak to police.
The SFPD lists 24 cases from Jan. 1 to June 30 as “cleared,” with 11 of these resulting from arrests and 13 closed without an arrest. Law enforcement calls the latter category an “exceptional clearance” — a classification intended for extreme circumstances, such as when a suspect has died.
The 11 cases that resulted in arrests had a similarity: They were almost all assigned to investigators within days of the exam. However, fewer than half the arrests were for rape or sexual battery; the majority were booked on domestic violence, weapons, drugs, or robbery charges.
The district attorney filed charges in three cases, and one, a robbery case, was later dismissed.
“Processing a sexual assault evidence kit is an important step, but it is only one part of a larger investigation,” said a spokesperson for the district attorney’s office, adding that while police need probable cause to make an arrest, the burden of proof required to prosecute a case is much higher. “The decision to file charges is based on the evidence in each individual case and whether that evidence supports proving the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The one and only sex-crime case
The only one of the 170 rape-kit cases that is being prosecuted as a sex crime did not follow the usual path through the SVU.
On Feb. 15, the Department of Emergency Management received a 911 call of a person screaming for help on the 2100 block of Larkin Street in Russian Hill. SFPD patrol officers responded within five minutes and found a woman on the street who was “visibly distraught,” according to a press release (opens in new tab). The woman told officers that a stranger followed her home, and as she was closing her door, he forced his way inside and attempted to sexually assault her. She escaped and ran for help.
A photo of the suspect was sent in a department-wide email, asking for help in identifying him. The SVU was called and took over the investigation at the scene.
The next day, Daquane Hubbard, 34, was arrested — but not by the SVU. Officers from the department’s drug-market enforcement team identified Hubbard, and the arrest was aided by plainclothes and fugitive recovery enforcement officers. Lew thanked “all the police officers from multiple stations for their outstanding police work and coordination.”
The DA charged Hubbard with eight felonies, including attempted rape, forcible sexual penetration, and sexual battery. He’s currently in custody awaiting trial. Attempts to reach his attorney were unsuccessful.
Hubbard had been arrested for misdemeanor sexual battery in 2023, but the DA declined to prosecute. He had also been arrested in 2024 by BART Police and charged with assault and elder abuse. In 2025, he was granted mental health diversion, which was terminated in April after the attempted rape charges.
Changes promised
At the Board of Supervisors’ special joint hearing called after The Standard’s July investigation, SFPD leaders apologized for the low clearance rate and shorthanded investigation units. But despite their contrition, some of what they said is hard to square with the department’s own data.
Asked by Supervisor Jackie Fielder what happens when no investigator is available to take a new case, SVU Captain William Toomey said, “That doesn’t happen.” Yet in the department’s latest report, 32 of the 170 cases it listed had no investigator.
Toomey said the share of inactive cases naturally grows as cases get older. But the SFPD’s report lists 78% of this year’s cases as inactive despite none being more than 6 months old. And the share of rape-kit cases the SFPD listed as inactive climbed from 46% in 2019.
Asked whether a suspect’s claim that the sex was consensual ends an investigation, Toomey said, “Absolutely not.” He added, “I know for a fact that perpetrators of crimes lie.”
But the SFPD’s latest rape-kit report says otherwise. The report lists four common reasons why rape-kit cases are labeled inactive. Two involve an unknown suspect. One cites a survivor who stopped cooperating after the exam. The fourth is described as “Suspect thought the sex was consensual and there is no other corroborating evidence.”
Meanwhile, the unit handling these cases has gotten smaller. At its peak in 2019, the SVU had 72 employees. By June, that number had shrunk to 42, according to Sernoffsky. A public records request received by The Standard in October shows the unit now has 38 staffers.
Lew said at the hearing that the SFPD hopes to add at least five investigators to the SVU by the end of the year.
San Francisco’s Office of Sexual Harassment and Assault Response and Prevention (opens in new tab) offers confidential support to victims of sexual violence.