Seth Klamann is a statehouse reporter at the Denver Post, covering policy, state government and the legislature. He previously worked for the Gazette, the Casper Star-Tribune and the Omaha World-Herald. He's a graduate of the University of Missouri and a proud Kansas City native.
A Colorado Bureau of Investigation forensic scientist sets up DNA samples for testing at the bureau’s lab in Arvada on Friday, July 15, 2016. The 190-day testing lag is well outside the 60-day goal set by the legislature in state law, and it’s more than twice as long as the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s internal goal of three months.
But the reduced backlog also represents a significant improvement from last June’s lag time of 450 days, officials from the state auditor’s office told lawmakers Wednesday morning. Both auditors and CBI officials said the agency should be able to hit 90 days before the end of the year. “At this time last year, we were at over 500 days, maybe it was in the 560s,” said Rep. Jenny Willford, a Northglenn Democrat. “So I do want to acknowledge that there has been significant progress made, and there are a lot of audit recommendations to implement still, and I look forward to working with you on that.”. The backlog was sharply exacerbated by the alleged misconduct of a lab analyst, who’s been accused of manipulating results for more than 1,000 DNA tests. After the scale of the problem became public last year, the legislature directed more money to the CBI and set a goal to drastically reduce the wait time. The state has signed contracts worth about $2.8 million to outsource 1,400 cases — at a cost of roughly $2,000 per case. The CBI also expects to have money to farm out another 500 cases. But the agency likely can’t hit the 60-day target set by the legislature without additional resources, the auditor’s office said. Lance Allen, the CBI’s deputy director for forensic services, told lawmakers that Connecticut has roughly the same number of DNA scientists as Colorado, even though its lab receives about half as many cases as the CBI’s team.Colorado Senate passes measure that would allow people to sue ICE agents for constitutional violationsColorado bill targeting guns made with 3-D printers clears first hurdle “We’ve come a long way in the last year — we really have — and we have a lot longer to go. I personally am interested in understanding with specificity what the resourcing would look like to truly get to and promise 60 days,” said Sen. Mike Weissman, an Aurora Democrat.Boulder bike shop was sold without owner’s OK, he saysColorado weather: More than a foot of snow forecast for mountainsHere's why 6,000 trees were removed from Chatfield State Park the past two wintersAvalanche trade Samuel Girard, second-round pick to Penguins for Brett Kulak
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