Despite improvements in DNA matching and reliability, forensics labs across the country still continue to train and monitor technicians improperly, resulting in shoddy work and tainted cases. C.J. Ciaramella does a round up of the worst examples:
Austin, Texas
The Austin Police Department’s DNA lab closed last June after state officials discovered it had been using outdated statistical methods for years, which may have led it to overstate its confidence in DNA matches. New, more reliable methods were established in 2010 and eventually adopted by every accredited DNA lab in the country—except Austin’s.
“One would think it would have been picked up,” Lynn Garcia, general counsel for the Texas Forensic Science Commission, told the Austin American-Statesman.
There were other problems as well, including freezer failures. It will cost $7–$14 million to review the roughly 4,000 cases suspected to be impacted by the lab’s substandard performance.
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