Serial Sex Offender Convicted of Sexual Assault After Backlogged Kit is Tested

BLACK RIVER FALLS, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul today announced that a serial sex offender has been convicted of sexual assault after a victim’s sexual assault kit was tested as part of the Wisconsin Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). Hank W. Elmore, age 37 of La Crosse, Wis., plead guilty to Third Degree Sexual Assault on February 4, 2021.

“After more than ten long years, there has finally been a conviction in this case,” said Attorney General Kaul. “Through the Wisconsin Sexual Assault Kit Initiative and other critical work, the Wisconsin Department of Justice is continuing to make it a priority to hold offenders accountable, support survivors, and strengthen Wisconsin’s response to sexual assault.”

The sexual assault occurred in Jackson County in 2010. A sexual assault nurse examination was conducted after the assault. The sexual assault kit was tested in 2018 as part of the Wisconsin SAKI project, and DNA in the kit matched to Elmore. Elmore has prior convictions for sexual assault from 2003 and 2014.

The judge placed the defendant on probation for four years and imposed and stayed the maximum sentence: ten years in prison consisting of five years of initial confinement and five years of extended supervision. If Elmore’s probation is revoked, the stayed prison sentence will go into effect.

This investigation was the result of a joint effort by the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory, and the Wisconsin Sexual Assault Kit Initiative team at DOJ. Victim services were provided by the Jackson County Victim Witness Office. The case was prosecuted by DOJ Assistant Attorney General Noel A. Lawrence and Assistant District Attorney Emily E. Hynek of the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office.

The criminal complaint is available upon request.

Press release: https://www.doj.state.wi.us/news-releases/serial-sex-offender-convicted-sexual-assault-after-backlogged-kit-tested#overlay-context=