Illinois State Police Forensic Services improvements continue as new
commission meets for the first time
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 [March 29, 2022]
PESOTUM – Illinois State Police (ISP) Director Brendan F.
Kelly today kicked off the first meeting of the Forensic Science
Commission (Commission) charged with ensuring the efficient delivery of
forensic science to help ensure swift justice for victims as well as to
exonerate the wrongly accused. The Commission builds on the work ISP has
done over the past several years to improve forensic services, including
reducing the total forensic backlog by 72% in two years.
“As governor, I’ve been proud to champion new investments to solve
crimes and advance justice for victims, survivors, and their families —
including reducing the long-standing DNA backlog and funding the new
forensics facility in Decatur,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “The Forensic
Science Commission has been an indispensable tool in our fight to solve
crimes and pursue justice, and I’m proud to bring these experts together
to further improve our state systems.”
“The Illinois State Police Division of Forensic Services has made
tremendous improvements over the past several years resulting in reduced
turnaround times for processing evidence and quicker justice for victims
of crime,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “The Illinois Forensic
Science Commission can help guide the future of forensic science in
Illinois by identifying efficiencies, new technologies and
methodologies, improving communications among stakeholders, and
analyzing current policies and practices that impact the use of forensic
evidence in the courts.”
The Commission will review all aspects and sound practices of forensic
services with the goal of reducing or eliminating inefficiencies that
contribute to backlogs and errors, and focus on education, training,
funding, and hiring.
Recent improvements to the ISP Division of Forensic Services (DFS)
included hiring additional forensic scientists, utilization of robotics,
and implementation of new technology that allowed DFS to go paperless,
which helped reduce the turnaround time for processing evidence. Over
the past two years, ISP has reduced its total forensic backlog by
approximately 72%.
From February 2019 to the end of 2021, backlogs across
DFS decreased significantly. Specifically, reductions achieved include:
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 “On behalf of sexual assault survivors across the
state, the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA)
applauds the progress the Illinois State Police has made reducing
the backlog of sexual assault evidence collection kits awaiting
forensic analysis,” said ICASA Chief Executive Officer and
Commission member Carrie Ward. “There have been significant steps
forward in improving the efficiency of the analysis process. We
appreciate the continued steps ISP and Director Kelly have taken to
improve the system for survivors. ICASA looks forward to the
eventual elimination of the backlog of untested kits, demonstrating
these cases are being investigated and processed in the timely and
efficient manner that survivors deserve.”
The Commission will also collect and analyze information, as well as
evaluate the impact of current laws, rules, policies, and practices
on forensic crime laboratories.
“I am proud of the fact that our state has enacted legislation to
create this Forensic Science Commission, as the work of the
Commission will seek to enhance justice for both victims and
defendants alike,” said Illinois Innocence Project retired Executive
Director and Commission member John J. Hanlon. “As an attorney whose
work has often involved trying to remedy cases of wrongful
convictions of the innocent, I know that countless innocent
individuals have been sent to prison based on “junk science”, i.e.
forensic evidence which lacks proper scientific underpinnings.
Improvements are also needed in the area of preservation of evidence
with circuit clerks and law enforcement agencies in Illinois cities
and counties. I look forward to working with the members of the
Commission toward understandings and meaningful improvements in
these areas and others.”
ISP launched a publicly available web-based dashboard to provide
information on processing times and backlogs, which is available on
the ISP Forensics Reports website. ISP has also implemented an
online Sexual Assault Tracking system that allows survivors of
sexual assault to monitor their evidence online throughout the
entire process, from collection at the hospital, through law
enforcement pick-up and submission to the forensic lab, and lastly
to the State’s Attorney’s office where final results are received.
The mission of the ISP DFS is to deliver complete, accurate, and
timely crime scene evidence collection and forensic analysis to
every law enforcement agency within the state. With the six current
laboratories and nearly 500 forensic services personnel, DFS
completed more than 70,000 forensic assignments in 2021.
Made possible by $76.6 million from Rebuild Illinois, ISP is
building a new combined crime laboratory and administrative facility
in Joliet. The current Joliet Forensic Science Laboratory, built in
1964, is responsible for work products that directly affect the
criminal justice system and services more than 200 law enforcement
agencies. Additionally, ISP will be opening another lab in Decatur.
[ISP Public Information Office] |
