Kansas FY 23 Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grant Program (formula)

Description of the Issue: Forensic laboratories are constantly faced with the challenge of increasing caseloads and demand for forensic analyses without an increase in resources.  Similarly, laboratories are expected to keep pace with technological advances, support, and equipment capabilities with the current limited funding.

The three accredited forensic science laboratories in Kansas will share these funds to:

Purchase Ethernet filters to streamline extraction processes of digital evidence;
Purchase an evidence locker for storage of devices in brute force status without power interruption in a secure location;
Purchase Advanced Methods adaptors to reduce time in imaging mobile devices and provide new support for devices that currently do not have adapters;
Upgrade infrastructure in the Toxicology Section instrument room (Topeka) to support electrical and gas requirements for an additional system optimal for testing for opioids;
Upgrade infrastructure to address Toxicology Section space restrictions (Wichita), allowing scientists to have adequate workstations for interpretation and review of data;
Purchase of flash drives to transfer chemistry section data from each instrument’s hard drive to the laboratory’s shared drive;
Replace unreliable Test Tube Centrifuges;
Purchase a stable and vibration resistant analytical balance table for methamphetamine quantitations;
Provide overtime hours dedicated to firearms comparison cases, focusing on backlog reduction;
Purchase headspace autosamplers to replace aging equipment no longer eligible for maintenance and support, facilitating completion of post-mortem analysis;
Provide Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) annual maintenance to facilitate and digitalize bench notes, evidence transfers, examination documentation, reporting, and tracking of laboratory quality metrics; and
Provide annual licensing for Grayshift GrayKey software and Berla iVe software; and
Provide for warranty renewal and protection plan for the IBIS BRASSTRAX Acquisition Station.

The overall outcomes to be achieved are:

Increased efficiency through improved quality and timeliness of forensic services;
Reduction of case backlog; 
Increased testing of opioids and synthetic drugs; and
Improved services to the Kansas criminal justice community.