The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is recognizing the contributions of its Crime Laboratory Division during National Forensic Science Week, which runs from September 15 to 21.
“Every day our crime labs across the state are doing extraordinary work,” said DPS Director Steven McCraw. “Without the expertise and commitment of these men and women, we would not be able to protect and preserve public safety in Texas. We owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to these individuals who work tirelessly behind the scenes.”
Established in 1937 as a one-chemist operation at Camp Mabry in Austin, the DPS Crime Laboratory Division has evolved into a comprehensive forensic laboratory system with 16 accredited crime labs across Texas. The division now comprises approximately 660 personnel.
The DPS Crime Laboratory Division’s standard areas of analysis include trace evidence, biology/DNA, digital/multimedia evidence, firearms and toolmarks, friction ridge analysis, forensic documents, seized drugs, and toxicology. These services are provided at various labs statewide for optimal access. The integration and exchange of local, state, regional, and national information via databases such as the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) and the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) further enhance investigative capabilities.
The Crime Laboratory also includes the Breath Alcohol Laboratory (BAL) and its Office of the Scientific Director (OSD), which administers a statewide judicially acceptable forensic breath alcohol test program.
Recent developments in DPS crime labs include aiding approximately 28 additional unsolved cases through House Bill 1399 this year by collecting DNA samples from those arrested for certain felonies. Effective September 1, 2023, House Bill 3956 mandated that booking facilities collect DNA samples from all arrestees charged with felony class offenses occurring on or after that date. This legislation has resulted in an additional 100 CODIS hits so far.
Turnaround times for sexual assault kits (SAKs) remain under 90 calendar days for DPS labs across Texas. The sexual assault evidence-tracking program continues to allow survivors to anonymously track and receive updates on their evidence's status. As of August 31, 2024, a total of 50,727 SAKs are being tracked in Track-Kit.
DPS continues testing older SAKs that had been stored untested in property rooms across the state. Since March 2022, DPS has completed testing on 1,347 SAKs as part of this project.
The 88th Legislature provided approximately $15 million to improve turnaround times for detecting drugs in biological samples. Consequently, the Toxicology (Drugs) backlog has been reduced by almost 2,000 cases.
In honor of National Forensic Science Week, DPS is offering public tours of its labs across Texas. Free tickets for visiting the Austin Lab at DPS Headquarters can be obtained online. Tour times and availability for other regions can be checked by contacting individual laboratories.
