Download Crime Labs

An Essential Component of Crime Scene Investigation
Why Were Crime Labs Created?
 With all of the new forensic techniques that were
developed and used in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s it
became obvious that a specialized team and central
location was needed to analyze the evidence found at a
crime scene.
A European Beginning
 First crime lab in the world:
1910 in Lyon, France
Opened by Edmond Locard (“Sherlock
Holmes of France”)
Earliest Labs in the United States
 First crime lab in the United States:
1923 in Los Angeles, California
Opened by Vollmer (Police Chief)
 First private lab:
1929 in Chicago, Illinois
Location – Northwestern University
Opened by Goddard in response to St.
Valentine’s Day Massacre
The First Federal Lab
 First Federal Lab:
1932 in Washington, D.C.
Opened by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Goddard was a consultant
Special Agent Charles Appel was the only
employee with one borrowed microscope.
Federal Labs Today
 Today there are four major Federal Crime Labs that
investigate evidence outside of local and state
jurisdiction.
1. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) -operates
under The Department of Justice and maintains the
largest crime lab in the world. The lab analyzes any
type of evidence.
Federal Labs Today (cont)
2. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) – operates under
The Department of Justice. This lab analyzes drug
evidence seized in federal investigations.
3. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosions
(ATF&E) – operates under The Department of Justice.
This agency enforces tax laws related to alcohol and
tobacco and analyzes weapons and explosives
evidence.
Federal Labs Today (cont)
4. The United States Postal Service – this lab analyzes
any evidence relating to postal service.
Increase in the Number of Crime
Labs
 Today there are approximately 370 public crime labs in
the United States.
 Since 1966 the number of crime labs has tripled.
 There are 4 reasons for this unprecedented growth.
Increase in the Number of Crime
Labs (cont)
Supreme Court decisions in the 1960’s mandated the
advisement of Miranda Rights to any criminal
suspect. This has virtually eliminated criminal
confessions and created a need for secure,
scientifically evaluated evidence for court.
2. The crime rate has increased significantly in the past
40+ years.
1.
Increase in the Number of Crime
Labs (cont)
3. All drug evidence has to be sent to a crime lab for
confirmatory tests.
4. The discovery of DNA fingerprinting increased the
testing of saliva, hair, semen and blood.
Organization of a Crime Lab
 Crime labs operate at the local, state and federal level
and have a staff between 1 and 100 employees.
 The size and number of departments in a lab is based
on allocated resources, local laws and organizational
capabilities.
 A local lab that has limited resources may send
evidence to the state or federal lab for analysis.
Full Service Crime Lab
A full service crime lab will generally have the
following divisions/units:
 Physical Science Unit
 Biology Unit
 Firearms Unit
 Document Examination Unit
 Photography Unit
The Process: What happens when
the evidence arrives at the lab?
 GBI Lab Video
Analysis Percentage
 The most frequent evidence analysis for most crime
labs is:
Controlled Substances 46%
Toxicology 18%
Latent Prints 10%
Crime Scene Processing 7%
Firearms & Toolmarks 4%
DNA 2%
So Many Labs: No Backlog
Right???
 Interestingly, as the number of crime labs has
multiplied so has the backlog of evidence that needs
analysis.
 There is not a uniform definition for backlog.
 However, most labs consider a case backlogged if the
evidence is untested after 30 days (some as long as 90
days)
Reasons for Backlogs
 The three most common reasons for backlogs:
Lab is too small or does not have modern equipment
2. Too few employees
3. Lack of funds
1.
Results of Backlog
 Innocent person sitting in jail (up to 6 months)
 Guilty person free and may continue to commit crimes
 Statute of limitations runs out before evidence is
tested
Examples
 Negative: In Austin, Texas blood from a DUI
case was untested for 200 days which is
6 times longer than 3 years ago.
 In North Carolina a blood test from a DUI/Vehicular
Homicide case took 13 months.
 Positive : Louisiana has eliminated all backlog cases
and is processing in real time. (July 2013)
 Georgia has reduced backlog cases by 55%. (July 2013)
A Crime Lab Budget
 The funds allotted to a crime lab ultimately determines
how backlogged the cases become.
 The recent economic issues have strained the
resources of many labs.