As an organization comprised of people who have been impacted by sexual violence, PERL is very concerned by revelations that Lt. Ouita Knowlton, the award-winning supervisor of the MPD’s DNA Unit, was relieved of duty April 3 and now faces a criminal investigation.
We are also disappointed that we are learning about this from a press investigation and not from the City of Memphis, which has long promised transparency in investigating these neglected rape cases.
Rape victims deserve to know why Knowlton was relieved of duty and whether their cases are impacted by her behavior. We expect the applicable leadership to provide these assurances.