A “TOUR” OF THE ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY CRIME LAB HOME OF YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD FORENSIC SCIENCE NERDS
What’s on tap for today? CSI vs. Reality Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Keys to Quality Evolution of the AZDPS Lab
VS
CSI You get to analyze DNA, fibers, firearms, fingerprints and explosives all in a single day’s work.
AZ DPS You get to be an expert in one or two of the following fields: Controlled Substances Latent Prints DNA Database Questioned Documents DNA / Serology Trace Evidence Firearms Toxicology
CSI You work in dark rooms, lit only with blue light where you get to use really cool scientific instruments that always give you the answers you are looking for.
AZ DPS You work in a well lit laboratory where you get to use high-tech instruments to produce unbiased scientific data.
CSI You carry a gun and interrogate suspects.
AZ DPS You get to be a scientist, not a detective.
CSI You drive around in a Hummer.
AZ DPS You drive around in a 2009 Toyota Yaris pool car.
CSI You get to wear very expensive designer clothing.
AZ DPS You get to wear a nice white lab coat with your name embroidered on it.
CSI You get a whole crime solved in less than 60 minutes, even with commercials.
AZ DPS You get to provide an important piece to the puzzle and help do what you can in a realistic time frame (which may be months)
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab Four laboratories statewide ◦ Phoenix – Central Regional Crime Laboratory ◦ Tucson – Southern Regional Crime Laboratory ◦ Flagstaff – Northern Regional Crime Laboratory ◦ Lake Havasu City – Western Regional Crime Laboratory One superintendent for entire lab system Individual managers at each laboratory ◦ One each at SRCL, NRCL, and WRCL ◦ Four at CRCL ◦ One Quality Assurance Manager for lab system at CRCL
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab NRCL CRCL SRCL WRCL DNA DNA DNA Alcohol Toxicology Alcohol Toxicology DNA Database Alcohol Toxicology Controlled Substances Alcohol Toxicology Drug Toxicology Drug Toxicology (Urine) Latent Prints Drug Toxicology Controlled Substances Controlled Substances Controlled Substances Latent Prints Latent Prints Latent Prints Firearms/Toolmarks Firearms/Toolmarks Footwear Questioned Documents Trace Evidence Field Services Unit
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab DNA ◦ Identify bodily fluids (serology) ◦ Associate a DNA profile to an item (DNA) ◦ Services include property crimes, sex assaults, violent crime, CODIS/knowns, familial and Rapid DNA Database ◦ Analyze convicted offender and arrestee samples for inclusion in the CODIS database Alcohol Toxicology ◦ Analyze blood samples for alcohol content
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab Drug Toxicology ◦ Analyze bodily fluids (blood and urine) for the presence of drugs and their metabolites Controlled Substances ◦ Analyze evidence for the presence of illegal drugs Latent Prints ◦ Process evidence to develop and lift/photograph latent prints ◦ Compare developed prints to known prints and/or fingerprint databases
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab Firearms/Toolmarks ◦ Compare bullets and cartridge cases ◦ General rifling characteristics ◦ Distance determination ◦ Shooting reconstructions ◦ Toolmark analysis Questioned Documents ◦ Handwriting comparisons ◦ Counterfeit documents ◦ Other analyses involving documents
Structure and Functions of the AZDPS Lab Trace Evidence ◦ Analyze fire debris for ignitable liquids ◦ Analyze evidence to determine types of explosives Footwear ◦ Analyze footwear impressions to determine details and, if possible, potential source Field Services Unit ◦ Crime Scene Assistance and Photography ◦ Train officers, provide court support, and perform yearly maintenance on breath alcohol devices ◦ More to come
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Firearms Lab Firing Range
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Firearms Comparison Microscope
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Latent Print Lab
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Latent Print Superglue Cabinet
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Photography of Evidence Processed with Superglue and BY40
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Questioned Document Analysis of Euro
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Rapid DNA Room
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Property and Evidence Warehouse
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Toxicology Lab
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Toxicology Instrument Room
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab Controlled Substances Analysis
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab DNA Extraction Robot
A “Tour” of the Central Regional Lab DNA Post-Amp Room
Keys to Quality Evidence handling and chain of custody ◦ Evidence is tracked from the moment it comes into the lab until the moment it leaves to go back to an agency or it is disposed ◦ Chain of custody is maintained electronically ◦ All transfers of evidence to individuals are recorded and digitally signed for ◦ Records are stored according to retention schedules
Keys to Quality Quality assurance procedures ◦ Multiple levels of quality assurance ◦ Bureau level ◦ Unit level ◦ Procedure level ◦ Double reviews on all scientific reports ◦ Independent verifications of comparative conclusions in firearms and latent prints ◦ Controls and calibrators run with analytical runs ◦ Preliminary and confirmatory tests, where applicable ◦ Duplicate testing, where applicable ◦ Uncertainty of measurement where applicable
Keys to Quality Accreditation ◦ Accreditation involves an audit by an outside agency that looks to determine two main things ◦ Do you have documented procedures within your lab and do you follow them? ◦ Are those procedures considered appropriate by the forensic science community? ◦ Gives all parties in the criminal justice system confidence that the reports being provided and the work being done by a lab are appropriate, valid, and acceptable per the relevant scientific community ◦ AZDPS Crime Lab was first accredited in 1982 (the second forensic lab accredited in the country) ◦ Lab has continuously maintained accreditation since that time
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Backlog reduction and turnaround time improvements Laboratory Field Testing Rapid DNA Law Enforcement program Rapid DNA Booking Station Pilot Program Familial DNA Direct to DNA Field Services Unit Outreach
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Backlog reduction and turnaround time improvements ◦ In July 2015, the AZDPS Crime Lab had 6,639 cases backlogged (defined as cases older than 30 days) ◦ As of mid-March 2018, that number has dropped to 2,297 cases, the lowest system backlog in 11 years ◦ Many cases now have reports issued within 30 days ◦ Achieved through variety of ways ◦ Specialization of DNA units to handle specific workflows ◦ Threshold processing ◦ Workflow changes utilizing lab techs ◦ Movement of cases throughout system ◦ Focus on productivity metrics
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Laboratory Field Testing ◦ Modified version of field testing performed within the laboratory ◦ Allows analysis of most controlled substances cases within a week ◦ Provides ability to charge and plea on cases in a timely fashion ◦ Reduces associated backlogs in other units, such as latents ◦ Option for additional work if going to court ◦ Dropped the controlled substances backlog for the DPS lab system from 2277 cases in August 2017 to 497 cases in March 2018
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Rapid DNA Law Enforcement program ◦ Officers statewide trained as operators on Rapid DNA instruments ◦ Allows analysis of single source DNA samples in less than two hours to develop investigative leads ◦ Utilized in over 400 cases since launch of program in April 2014 ◦ Helped to develop investigative leads in over 140 cases ◦ All cases verified by the laboratory prior to trial
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Examples of investigations aided by Rapid DNA Officer involved shooting – Central Phoenix ◦ Match to one of five suspects in case through blood Bank robbery – Southern AZ ◦ Match through swab of sunglasses Child molestation – East Valley ◦ Match to family friend through semen ID of body found in desert – West Valley ◦ Aided investigation for two agencies with one test Breaking and entering sex assault – West Valley ◦ Suspect identified within 6 hours of incident through semen
Evolution of the DPS Crime Lab Rapid DNA Booking Station Pilot Program ◦ Five states partnering with the FBI ◦ Goal of testing use of Rapid DNA instrumentation at booking stations ◦ Suspect arrested ◦ DNA taken and run through instrument on site at booking station ◦ Results uploaded to special CODIS database within two hours ◦ May eventually lead to quicker identification of suspects and DNA from unsolved cases
Recommend
More recommend
