Rape survivor advocate who helped lead KIYC investigation dies at 51

News 12 New Jersey is remembering an advocate for sexual assault survivors who contributed to Kane In Your Corner’s “Victims of the System” investigation.

News 12 has learned that Natasha Alexenko, a voice for rape and sexual assault survivors through her organization Natasha’s Justice Project, has died at the age of 51.

Alexenko became a lawyer after surviving a rape while still in college and walking back to her apartment. Her rape kit hasn’t been tested in ten years. She says the experience motivated her to advocate for other survivors.

“So many people have come into my life through this process of coming forward as a survivor, and they have helped me lay the foundation for how I can use my story to help others,” Alexenko previously told News 12. “ And again, like it’s just kind of a symbiotic relationship where I can help others and they can help me by bringing me joy and also sharing their hopes and dreams.

In a primetime investigative special from News 12 in New Jersey, Kane In Your Corner revealed how thousands of rape kits in the state went untested, even though survivors wanted them tested.

The research prompted state lawmakers to introduce a bill that would require all rape kits to be tested.