Jen Lawson

Fri, Dec 19, 2003 (11:07 a.m.)

Crime scene analysts on the television program "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" have roomy offices and spacious labs.

But the Metro Police criminalistics bureau, on which the show is based, is so strapped for space that offices the size of large closets are occupied by four or more analysts. And sometimes they have to wait several hours for free table space to examine the evidence they collect.

"This was a very nice place for our bureau to grow up in," Capt. Tom Hawkins, head of the criminalistics bureau, said. "But we've outgrown it."

For 15 years, the 20,000-square-foot criminalistics bureau has been housed in five separate office suites in a one-story complex on West Charleston Boulevard near Rainbow Boulevard.

But within the past three years, as the bureau has purchased more equipment, hired more employees and handled an increased number of cases, the space problem has gotten particularly bad "and it just continues to get worse," Hawkins said.

To help remedy the problem, Sheriff Bill Young signed a contract last week with a company that will conduct a study of the criminalistics bureau's space needs and recommend some possible solutions, including building a new facility or leasing a larger space.

Health, Education + Research Associates, a St. Louis-based company specializing in technical facility design and planning, will take four to six weeks to do the study.

It's expected to be finished in March and will cost $54,600, Deputy Chief Richard McKee, head of the investigative services division, said.

"We don't know how many square feet we need," McKee said. The 125,000-square-foot evidence vault, which is also part of the bureau, is located in central Las Vegas and McKee said it "would be much more efficient to house everything in one building."

The criminalistics bureau has 144 employees working in three sections.

The crime scene investigation section includes the photo lab and the crime scene analysis department; the forensics lab includes the DNA, fingerprint analysis, handwriting, guns, toxicology and trace evidence departments; and the evidence vault.

Crime scene analysts go to the crime scenes and collect evidence then pass it off to the criminalists for scientific examination, Hawkins said.

Between January and June, the most recent statistics available, the forensics lab handled evidence in 9,199 cases.

The lack of space has created a backlog in some areas, particularly the DNA lab, Hawkins said. Homicide and sexual assault cases are the top priority and can be analyzed with results available within a week. But lower priority cases, such as a body found dumped in the desert, could take up to six weeks.

The fingerprint analysis area has the biggest backlog, he said, but prints lifted from scenes of serious crimes, such as homicides, sexual assaults or robberies, can be analyzed the same day.

Low priority cases such as vandalisms can take up to a year for criminalists to analyze.

Clark County District Attorney David Roger said he doesn't think the delays in processing evidence has resulted in any delays in the prosecution of cases, but he pointed out that it has created stress for those who work in the criminalistics bureau.

"They are all wonderful experts, but when you have a big caseload, it creates a potential for problems," he said.

Metro has 36 crime scene analysts, and recently hired seven more who will be on the job in about a month.

In one cramped office, Hawkins gestures to a desk shared by two people who work different shifts. Different sets of family photographs are on either side of the desk.

The crime scene analysts have four stations in which they spread out their evidence. The stations resemble drafting desks, except with flat surfaces, which the analysts cover with large sheets of paper to prevent their evidence from being contaminated with evidence from other cases.

"Sometimes they wait for two hours while another person finishes," McKee said.

The outlaw biker gang shootout in Laughlin last year was one of the most involved crime scene investigations, Hawkins said. It took weeks to analyze the evidence, which included 88 knives.

There used to be space for two vehicles in the garage, where analysts collect evidence from cars involved in crimes. But six months ago the department purchased five biohazard dryers and, because there was nowhere else to put them, they were set up in the garage. Now there's space for just one vehicle.

In the forensics lab, criminalist Scott Hardy will soon be sharing his work space with another employee. He said having "two people here will be really cumbersome."

A small room in the chemistry detail of the forensics lab houses a tank of water which analysts use to shoot guns to compare to shells found at crime scenes.

The firearms section, however, is in a different part of the office complex. There was no room for the tank there, said Tracy Birch, manager of the forensic lab's chemistry detail.

Not only does the forensics lab need more space, it also needs more staff. But more staff would require more space.

"It's a vicious cycle," Birch said.

A gun storage room, where samples of 1,500 different types of guns and many more types of ammunition, is so tight on space that "we've passed on guns we'd like to have because we didn't have space," Torrey D. Johnson, forensic lab manager, said.

Despite the lack of space, McKee said he "can't be prouder" of the job his employees are doing.

While plans are being set in motion to address the problem, it won't be resolved anytime soon, he said. If Metro finds the funds for a new facility, it could be at least two to three years before it's constructed.

archive