Recognizing the need to provide sexual assault survivors with better and easier access to information, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department has created two new alternatives for survivors to easily contact the Special Victims Unit directly and reach a victim advocate who can further assist them. Survivors may e-mail survivors@fortlauderdale.gov or call 954-828-6955. We have also created a link to the Nancy J. Cotterman Center (NJCC) which is Broward County’s certified sexual assault center. NJCC offers a variety of helpful resources for survivors of sexual assault which includes a 24-hour crisis intervention hot line, 954-761-RAPE (7273).

In 2016, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department Special Victims Unit (SVU) identified national efforts encouraging law enforcement agencies to review their sexual assault kits (SAKs), commonly known as rape kits, inventory and identify kits that may have been stored, but not tested with the latest technology. The Special Victims Unit identified 271 SAKs within the Fort Lauderdale Police Department’s evidence unit that met the criteria for further testing. Additionally, on July 1, 2016, Florida State Statute 943.326, which provides specific timelines for testing SAKs, became law. 

In 2018, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department Special Victims Unit learned of the National Sexual Assault (SAKI) grant, awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, and initiated efforts to apply for the fiscal year 2018 grant. The grant provides funds to test unsubmitted SAKs, for training, prosecution, and to review policy and procedures to ensure the grantee is following the best practices while utilizing a multi-disciplinary approach.

The Fort Lauderdale Police Department was awarded the SAKI grant and began our efforts to reduce the number of untested SAKs by submitting 140 SAKs for processing. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department, in partnership with BODE Technologies and the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), were able to successfully test the SAKs.

Since the initiation of the grant, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department has been able to accomplish the following:

• 140 SAKs were sent to BODE for testing.
• Of the 140, 66 SAKs had possible eligibility for Combined DNA Information System (CODIS) entry, and they were sent to the PBSO lab for processing.
• Of the 66, PBSO determined that 63 had viable DNA and three did not.
• The 63 SAKs with viable DNA yielded 65 male DNA profiles which were entered into CODIS.
• From the 65 profiles identified we obtained 43 CODIS hits.

Based on the above, 41 cold cases were re-opened for additional review/investigation. Many of these cases were not prosecutable for various reasons, to include lack of victim cooperation, the victim being deceased, the suspect being deceased, and the suspect being identified during the original investigation; therefore, the DNA hit did not change the status of the case. 

Out of the 41 identified cold cases, SVU Detective Yvette Martinez was able to successfully file three cases with the Broward County State Attorney’s Office (SAO) Sex Crimes Unit. A summary of each of the investigations is below.  

• OR# 99-032485- The defendant identified in this case is Joel Tiller, B/M, DOB 12/28/51, AKA Jay Taylor, Jason Taylor. Tiller was incarcerated for an unrelated offense and has a history of sexual assaults and homicides. Tiller has been linked to a homicide in Fort Lauderdale (OR# 99-123534) and a homicide in Atlanta. The victim in this case was 18 years old at the time of the sexual assault. She got lost in the downtown area and was making a telephone call when Tiller attacked her and forced her into a structure where he strangled and repeatedly raped her. As a result of this investigation, Tiller was charged with one count of sexual battery with great force.

• OR# 99-123534- The defendant identified in this case is Jose Luis Burgos, W/M, DOB 2/13/79. The victim in this case was 49 years old at the time of crime and the suspect was 19 years old. While the victim was walking home from a local bar, the suspect approached her and attempted to initiate a conversation. The victim, frightened and unsure of how to respond, continued walking. The suspect pulled her into an alley, strangled her with her shoelaces and sexually battered her. When officers found her, her shoelaces were still tied around her wrists. As a result of this investigation, Burgos, a documented career offender, was taken into custody in Puerto Rico and charged with one count of sexual battery with great force.

• OR# 10-049570- The defendant identified in this case is David Seals, B/M, DOB 11/08/1961. The victim in this incident was 23 years old at the time of the offense. The victim became separated from her friends at a convenience store. Two unidentified females asked her if she needed a ride and she accepted. The unidentified females told the victim that they needed to stop to pick something up from a residence. When the victim walked inside the home, she was surrounded by three Black males who took turns raping her for several hours as she was in and out of consciousness. Police became aware of the incident after another unknown male walked in, saw what was happening, and decided to help her. Seals, who is currently incarcerated at the Broward Sheriff’s Office Jail for an unrelated offense, was charged with one count of sexual battery.

Helpful Web Links:

News Release

Nancy J. Cotterman Center

Sexual Assault Kit Initiative

Bureau of Justice Assistance U.S. Department of Justice

"This project was supported by Grant No. 2018-AK-BX-0022 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the SMART Office. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice."