September 16, 2002

East Lansing - The Michigan State Police, Forensic Science Division (FSD) has been awarded a $1.4 million grant from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to support efforts to analyze the state’s DNA caseload. The grant, the second in two years from the NIJ, will be used to process more than 1,200 of the 26,000 "no-suspect" forensic cases for the MSP and the City of Detroit Crime Laboratory.

According to Captain Michael Thomas, Commanding Officer of the MSP Forensic Science Division ( FSD ), "This is tremendous news for our crime laboratories. DNA evidence will be developed from the forensic cases and added to the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). CODIS is the national DNA database that allows for DNA profiles from open cases and convicted felons to be compared nationwide." Thomas further stated, "We have had some tremendous success stories as a result of DNA analysis of the forensic case files. These include DNA hits on major cases including homicide, rape, and robbery. We expect even more success with the resources this grant provides to our laboratories." The NIJ grant will fund analytical instrumentation and overtime for staff as well as outsourcing of cases to private forensic science laboratories.

Michigan State Police Director, Col. Stephen D. Madden, has designated DNA analysis as one of the agency’s top priorities. According to Col. Madden, "No scientific development in my 30 plus years in this business has the capability of offering as significant an impact on our ability to solve crime and apprehend dangerous criminals as DNA." According to Madden, "We would like to see more funding opportunities like this from the federal government and eventually increase the number of laboratory scientists from our current staff of 23."

A 2001 grant for $717,900 from the NIJ helped to clear a backlog of CODIS database cases last year. Additional funding is being sought by the MSP to address this year’s caseload that has increased with passage of Michigan’s new DNA law. MSP expects to process 15,000 of the CODIS database samples in 2002.

According to Lt. Col. Robert Bertee, Commander the Investigative Services Bureau for the MSP, "We are moving very aggressively on DNA and in securing additional funding and resources to expedite the analysis of the forensic samples as well as the CODIS backlog." Bertee stated, "We know that there are criminals that we can identify and apprehend today with the information that is housed in our evidence room and available through DNA. Bertee went on to say, "When the analysis of CODIS samples is complete, the state’s system will provide law enforcement with a massive computerized database of known-offender DNA samples to match with forensic samples from crime scenes. Having this capability will allow us to match suspects with known crime scene samples."

The MSP is currently pursuing a Crime Laboratory Improvement Grant in the amount of $260,000 to enhance analytical computer software. To reduce the time necessary to process samples, the MSP FSD has automated the analysis process, becoming one of only a handful of automated CODIS laboratories in the nation. The FSD is also adjusting work schedules of laboratory staff to further reduce the time necessary for processing DNA samples from local agencies.

The MSP typically processes 2,250 forensic cases over the course of a year. A case includes one or more evidentiary samples.

Read more press releases from the Michigan State Police.