FY 2018 DNA Capacity Enhancement and Backlog Reduction Program

The South Dakota Forensic Laboratory (SDFL) is the only accredited laboratory in South Dakota capable of doing Forensic DNA analysis on criminal cases. As such, evidence from criminal cases throughout the entire state of South Dakota is submitted to the SDFL for Forensic Analysis.

The SDFL has managed a sub-90 day turnaround time for the past several years, despite an increase in Biology caseload. For several years, the SDFL has been working towards a plan to begin processing offender samples in-house. Doing so will improve timeliness of the processing of offender samples, decreasing the amount of time from collection to upload in the CODIS database, and also allow for forensic cases that result in a CODIS hit to be streamlined, reducing the case management and workload of forensic examiners.

Renewed funding will allow us to continue purchasing supplies for casework; eliminate funding spent on contractual services for outsourcing samples, and purchase supplies for on-site offender sample testing, reducing turnaround time in casework and offender sample processing.
NCA/NCF