FY 2016 DNA Capacity Enhancement and Backlog Reduction (CEBR) Program

The Office of Attorney General, Crime Laboratory Division is the agency that is responsible for analyzing evidential material associated with criminal investigations for all state and local law enforcement agencies and medical examiner and coroners within the state of North Dakota. The North Dakota Century Code 31-13 designates the Office of Attorney General, Crime Laboratory Division as the agency responsible for conducting DNA analysis on DNA samples collected from all convicted felony and registered offenders, as well as all felony arrestees in the state of North Dakota; the Office of Attorney General, Crime Laboratory Division is responsible for storing and maintaining the resultant profiles in the State DNA Index System (SDIS) and uploading the qualified profiles into the National DNA Index System (NDIS).

The overall objective of this grant is to enhance the basic infrastructure and capacity of DNA analyses and to decrease the current backlog of forensic casework in the DNA Unit of the Crime Laboratory Division. Funding will be used to purchase supplies for in-house DNA analysis of casework and offender samples, provide continuing education for DNA laboratory analysts, provide for an external audit and for a Laboratory Lean Project of the Forensic DNA Unit.

The Crime Laboratory Division, DNA Unit is striving to increase the productivity of each analyst to at least 32 samples per month. The DNA Unit expects to work at least 100 forensic DNA cases and 4,200 database samples (which includes 200 QC samples) using federal funding.
nca/ncf