Forensic Division Has Taken Appropriate Steps to Address Oregon s Sexual Assault Kit Testing Backlog

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1 Oregon State Police Forensic Division Has Taken Appropriate Steps to Address Oregon s Sexual Assault Kit Testing Backlog Report May 2018 Secretary of State Oregon Audits Division

2 Audit Objective The objective of this audit was to report on whether Oregon State Police (OSP) has taken actions to address the Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence (SAFE) kit backlog consistent with best practices and statute.

3 Key Findings 1. OSP has complied with Melissa s Law by increasing lab capacity and reporting results to legislators on efforts to reduce the SAFE kit backlog. 2. OSP is following best practices outlined by the National Institute of Justice for forensic labs that process SAFE kits. 3. OSP s decision to suspend DNA processing of property crime evidence to focus on SAFE kits could lead to a backlog of DNA evidence of this type at local law enforcement agencies.

4 The SAFE Kit Backlog Oregon had a significant statewide backlog of 5,562 kits, including 4,902 unprocessed SAFE kits in The Legislature, local law enforcement agencies, and OSP have made efforts to address this backlog.

5 Legislature: Melissa s Law addressed root cause that led to the statewide backlog In 2016, the Oregon Legislature passed Senate Bill 1571, referred to as Melissa s Law. The law eliminated law enforcement discretion for testing SAFE kits. Established the Joint Legislative Task Force on the Testing of Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Kits Outlined responsibilities for those involved in collecting and processing SAFE kits, including medical facilities, law enforcement agencies, and OSP Allocated $1.5 million to OSP to build capacity

6 Local Law Enforcement Agencies: Outsourcing alleviated half of the state s SAFE kit backlog Melissa s law did not provide local law enforcement agencies direction on what to do with SAFE kits collected and stored before the law came into effect. Approximately 2,945 SAFE kits from multiple local law enforcement agencies were outsourced to a private lab in Utah using grant funds. Any viable DNA results from the private lab are sent to OSP for technical review and potential entry into CODIS.

7 How we conducted the audit To inform our work, we conducted interviews, reviewed agency documentation, and observed lab practices. We interviewed agency staff and stakeholders, including local law enforcement officials as well as advocates. To gain an understanding of practices in other states, we interviewed representatives of, and reviewed supporting documentation from forensic labs in Houston, Texas, Washington, Illinois, and Idaho.

8 Audit Findings OSP has taken actions consistent with statutory requirements and national best practices to address the SAFE kit backlog. It is too soon to tell if these actions will eliminate the current backlog, as many of these changes occurred recently.

9 OSP has increased lab capacity and publicly reported on the backlog status in compliance with Melissa s Law OSP has used funds to hire lab analysts and administrative staff. 1,500 1, OSP reports on the status of their backlog and testing of SAFE kits to the Legislature. SAFE kits ,194 1,001 1,060 1, Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Pending SAFE Kits SAFE Kits Received SAFE Kits Completed

10 OSP is following best practices outlined by the National Institute of Justice for forensic labs that process SAFE kits. They have clear policies for both evidence submission and prioritization. OSP introduced changes in DNA analysis methodology to more efficiently analyze SAFE kits. Adding robotic equipment Using enhanced statistical analysis software to improve analysis of complex DNA results Shifting to what is called a Direct-to-DNA method

11 Increasing capacity to process SAFE kits resulted in a temporary decrease in analyst productivity Training new analysts, adding new equipment, and complying with new FBI requirements initially negatively affected OSP s ability to process SAFE kits. 4,000 3,500 Hours Spent by DNA Analysts 3,000 2,500 2,000 1,500 1, Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Completed SAFE Kits Training Hours Casework Hours

12 Emphasis on SAFE kit backlog led OSP to suspend DNA processing for property crimes OSP suspended DNA analysis for property crime evidence in December 2015, including the highly successful High Throughput Property Crimes (HTPC) pilot. There is a risk that a backlog of property crime evidence may be developing across the state.

13 Other states and large cities take similar approaches to Oregon These include prioritizing SAFE kit testing, outsourcing, and switching to a Direct-to-DNA method. Differences remain Houston, TX publish SAFE kit performance information on their website Washington and Idaho both adopted a statewide tracking system.

14 Next Steps As of January 2018, many of OSP s capacity-building and process improvement efforts have been implemented. OSP continues to seek process improvements. Lean Six Sigma began recently. OSP is in the process of acquiring a SAFE kit tracking system. OSP intends to resume DNA analysis of property crime evidence once the SAFE kit backlog is eliminated. OSP believes it can eliminate the backlog by the end of In 2015: approximately 4,900 kits End of 2017: 1,100 kits

15 Recommendations 1. Post SAFE kit processing status reports on the agency s website on a regular basis. 2. Examine available options for tracking SAFE kits, including efforts in other states, such as Washington and Idaho. 3. Create a plan to reintroduce DNA analysis for property crime evidence. Collect information from local law enforcement agencies about unprocessed property crime evidence to inform future OSP lab capacity planning. OSP agreed with our recommendations.

16 Questions? Audit Team Will Garber, Deputy Director Andrew Love, Audit Manager Danielle Moreau, Senior Auditor Jon Bennett, Staff Auditor Krystine McCants, Staff LinkedIn Oregon Auditing Blog Oregon Auditing Photo of the Golden Pioneer is Edmund Garman, some rights reserved under creative commons license. It has been modified.