* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
           
          [Houston Forensic Science]
          [00:00:19]
A BOARD MEETING OF THE HOUSTON FORENSIC SCIENCE CENTER. 
          IT IS 9:00 AM SO I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER. 
          UH, WELCOME EVERYONE. 
          UH, MADAM SECRETARY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLE? YES. 
          MADAM CHAIR CHAIRWOMAN MITCHELL. 
          PRESENT VICE CHAIR LYNCH. 
          KEY PRESENT? DIRECTOR VASQUEZ. 
          PRESENT. 
          DIRECTOR HILDER. 
          PRESENT. 
          DIRECTOR MEDINA. 
          DIRECTOR GOODWIN. 
          PRESENT. 
          DIRECTOR COHEN. 
          PRESENT. 
          DIRECTOR MOORE. 
          DIRECTOR. 
          HUFF DIRECTOR CALABRESE. 
          ALRIGHT, WONDERFUL. 
          WE HAVE A QUORUM, UH, MEMBERS DUE TO OUR EXECUTIVE SESSION TODAY. 
          JUST REMEMBER, PLEASE, PLEASE BE MINDFUL THAT OUR MEETING WILL PROBABLY RUN TILL NOON. 
          OKAY? THAT'S WHAT I'M THINKING. 
          UM, IF YOU NEED TO STEP OUT OR LEAVE EARLY, LET ME KNOW. 
          OR, OR MS. DEBERRY KNOWS SO THAT WE CAN MAKE A NOTE OF THAT. 
          UM, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND PROCEED WITH AGENDA ITEM NUMBER THREE, WHICH IS OUR PUBLIC COMMENT. 
          UH, WE ARE NOW GOING TO OPEN THE FLOOR FOR A PUBLIC COMMENT AND INVITE ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC THAT WISHES TO SPEAK TO COME TO THE PODIUM AND ADDRESS THE BOARD. 
          WE ASK THAT ALL SPEAKERS SIGN IN AT THE FRONT OF THE ROOM AND THAT WAY, THAT WAY WE ARE AWARE OF YOUR PRESENCE AND THAT ALL COMMENTS WILL BE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES. 
          UH, ANYONE MAY SPEAK ON ANY MATTER CONCERNING THE BOARD AND HFSC AT THIS TIME. 
          AND DO WE HAVE ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE? NO, WE DO NOT. 
          OKAY. 
          SEEING NO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN OUR AUDIENCE FOR TODAY, I AM GOING TO GO AHEAD AND CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD. 
          'CAUSE THERE'S NO ONE HERE. 
          OKAY. 
          AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS THE READING OF THE DRAFT MINUTES FROM SEPTEMBER 9TH, UH, 2022 BOARD MEETING. 
          UM, AND WE NEED TO, LET'S SEE, UH, IF HOPEFULLY EVERYONE HAS HAD A CHANCE TO READ THE MINUTES FROM THAT MEETING, AND ARE THERE ANY CORRECTIONS OR ANY CHANGES THAT WE NEED TO MAKE ON THOSE MEETING MINUTES? JUST ANOTHER SECOND TO TAKE A QUICK LOOK. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, AT THIS TIME WE WILL CONDUCT A VOICE VOTE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. 
          MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? I MOVE. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, DIRECTOR MOORE MADE THE MOTION. 
          SECOND. 
          EXCELLENT. 
          DIRECTOR COHEN DID THE SECOND. 
          ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. 
          AYE. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY. 
          MOTION CARRIES AND THE MINUTES HAVE BEEN APPROVED. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          OKAY. 
          AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS THE CHAIR'S REPORT, AND THIS INCLUDES A MONTHLY UPDATE OF ACTIVITIES AND SOME OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS. 
          FIRST OF ALL, I UNDERSTAND, DIRECTOR MOORE, YOU HAVE HAD A NURSING CENTER OF EXCELLENCE NAMED AFTER YOU AT HARRIS HEALTH. 
          WOULD YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT? CONGRATULATIONS, . 
          WELL, WONDERFUL. 
          CONGRATULATIONS. 
          CONGRATULATIONS. 
          YOU HAVE MADE, UM, SUCH A MARK ON NURSING HERE IN HARRIS COUNTY AND IN HOUSTON, AND I THINK IT'S WONDERFUL THAT THEY HAVE NAMED THAT BUILDING AFTER YOU. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, LET'S SEE. 
          OKAY. 
          I'D LIKE TO REMIND THE BOARD THAT THIS IS OUR LAST BOARD MEETING FOR THE YEAR. 
          WE WILL RESUME AGAIN IN JANUARY ON THE WONDERFUL FRIDAY THE 13TH. 
          SO PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDAR SO WE CAN START THE YEAR OFF WITH A BANG. 
          UM, AS THE BOARD KNOWS, WE ARE MEETING TODAY BECAUSE NOVEMBER 11TH WAS VETERAN'S DAY. 
          SINCE THIS IS OUR FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO GET TO GATHER AGAIN, I WOULD LIKE TO PUBLICLY EXTEND MY SINCERE APPRECIATION TO ALL OF OUR VETERANS FOR THEIR SERVICE. 
          HFSC IS FORTUNATE TO BE LED BY A VETERAN, DR. STOUT, AND WE ARE FORTUNATE TO HAVE SEVERAL VETERANS ON OUR STAFF WHO DO AMAZING WORK. 
          AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND I HOPE THAT YOU FELT THE APPRECIATION OF A GRATEFUL NATION ON THAT DAY. 
          UH, IT'S LASTLY, IT'S 
          [00:05:01]
ALREADY THE HOLIDAY SEASON AGAIN. 
          UM, HFSC, UH, THE EVENT PLANNING COMMITTEE HAS PLANNED THE ANNUAL HOLIDAY PARTY. 
          UH, THE PARTY IS SEPTEMBER, I'M SORRY, SEPTEMBER, SATURDAY, UH, DECEMBER THE 10TH AT KARBACH BREWERY AT FROM 7:00 PM UNTIL 10:00 PM. 
          AS ALWAYS, WE APPRECIATE THE BOARD'S SUPPORT OF THE HOLIDAY PARTY, WHICH SEPARATE, UH, WHICH CELEBRATES THE HARD WORK OF OUR STAFF ALL YEAR LONG. 
          IF BOARD MEMBERS ARE ABLE TO ATTEND THE EVENT AND VISIT OUR AMAZING STAFF, THAT WOULD BE WONDERFUL. 
          WHETHER OR NOT YOU CAN ATTEND THE PARTY, WE DO ENCOURAGE ALL MEMBERS TO CONSIDER DONATING WHATEVER YOU CAN TO HELP MAKE THIS PARTY A REALITY. 
          AS A REMINDER, HFSC DOES NOT USE TAXPAYER DOLLARS FOR THE HOLIDAY PARTY. 
          SO DONATIONS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. 
          YOU CAN DONATE ON THE HFSC WEBSITE WHENEVER YOU ARE READY, AND IF YOU NEED ANY ASSISTANCE, MS. DEBERRY IS ABLE TO HELP YOU AND CAN HELP FACILITATE THAT. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND WITH THAT FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX. 
          AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX IS DISCUSSION REGARDING A PROPOSED FOURTH AMENDMENT TO THE CORPORATION CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION. 
          ARTICLE NUMBER 13, TO MODIFY THE DESCRIPTION OF THE CORPORATION AS A PUBLIC INSTRUMENTALITY AND CONSIDER A RESOLUTION REGARDING THE SAME AND POSSIBLE RELATED ACTION. 
          SO, MEMBERS, IF YOU RECALL, DR. STOUT PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED THAT HE WOULD BE PRESENTING A PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO OUR CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION TO ALLOW HFSC TO POTENTIALLY BE ELIGIBLE FOR MORE FEDERAL UH, PROGRAMS, PARTICULARLY FEDERAL GRANT PROGRAMS. OUR GENERAL COUNSEL HAS BEEN WORKING WITH CITY LEGAL ON THIS AMENDMENT BECAUSE ANY AMENDMENT TO THE CERTIFICATE MUST BE SUBMITTED TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL. 
          DR. STOUT WILL EXPLAIN MORE ABOUT THE CHANGE IN LANGUAGE AND WHAT THAT WILL MEAN FOR HFSC. 
          IF WE APPROVE THE AMENDMENT AND RESOLUTION, THAT WILL NOT BE THE FINAL STEP IN THE PROCESS. 
          WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FILE THE AMENDMENT WITH THE SECRETARY OF STATE UNLESS CITY COUNCIL APPROVES THIS ACTION. 
          WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO DR. STOUT TO DISCUSS THIS ITEM A LITTLE BIT FURTHER. 
          DR. STOUT, THANK YOU MUCH. 
          I WAS JUST PULLING UP THE OFFENDING ARTICLE HERE. 
          UM, THE MIC. 
          YEP. 
          HEAR ME NOW. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          UM, SO THE, THE, THE ARTICLE IN OUR FORMATION DOCUMENT THAT CREATES THE PROBLEM IS ARTICLE 13 PUBLIC INSTRUMENTALITY. 
          AND IN 2017, WE APPLIED FOR A GRANT UNDER THE PAUL COVERDALE ACT. 
          PAUL COVERDALE. 
          UH, THAT ACT HAS ABOUT $30 MILLION A YEAR NATIONALLY FOR GRANT AWARDS. 
          THERE IS A, UM, WHAT THEY CALL FORMULA SIDE TO IT. 
          IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S A BLOCK GRANT TO STATES AND THEN IT'S DISTRIBUTED BASICALLY ON A FORMULA. 
          WE'VE NOT PICKED THIS ISSUE BECAUSE THAT FORMULA SIDE FOR US IS SOMEWHERE BETWEEN ABOUT 12 AND ABOUT $18,000 A YEAR. 
          IT'S NOT REAL BIG, AND THE RISK WAS IN THIS LANGUAGE CHANGE. 
          OUR STRUCTURE IS WEIRD FOR US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE TO THINK THROUGH WHAT WE QUALIFY FOR AND WHAT WE DON'T. 
          UM, AND WE DIDN'T WANNA RISK THE DISCUSSION BECAUSE THERE, THERE WAS A DISCUSSION EARLY ON BACK IN ABOUT 20 13 20 14 OF HSCS QUALIFICATION FOR MONEY UNDER THE DEBBIE SMITH ACT, WHICH IS THE CAPACITY ENHANCEMENT BACKLOG REDUCTION GRANTS THAT ARE TYPICALLY ABOUT ONE AND A HALF TO $2 MILLION A YEAR TO US. 
          SO THAT'S, THAT'S A REAL ISSUE THAT WE NEEDED TO PROTECT. 
          UM, BUT THIS INSTRUMENTALITY ARTICLE HERE SAYS, UM, THAT THE CORPORATION IS NOT A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OR POLITICAL AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF TEXAS WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE CONSTITUTION LAWS. 
          THE GOAL OF THIS IS AROUND HFSC CAN'T CREATE A DEBT FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON WITHOUT THE CITY OF HOUSTON'S INPUT. 
          MAKES SENSE. 
          US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, HOWEVER, BECAUSE THAT LANGUAGE MATCHES EXACTLY THE LANGUAGE AND THE AUTHORIZING BILL FOR PAUL COVERDALE THAT SAYS YOU HAVE TO BE AN INSTRUMENTALITY OR POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THE STATE. 
          THEY HAVE TAKEN AN EXTREMELY STRICT READING OF THAT AND SAY, WE DON'T QUALIFY FOR PAUL COVERDALE. 
          UM, IT CAME UP THIS YEAR BECAUSE IN THE AUTHORIZATION BILL THAT IS PROCEEDING THROUGH THE US CONGRESS CURRENTLY, THERE BECAME A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE QUALIFICATION FOR DEBBIE SMITH ACT. 
          UM, THAT CONCERN HAS RESOLVED. 
          I THINK THEY'VE, THEY'VE WORKED OUT THE LANGUAGE IN THE APPROPRIATIONS ACT. 
          SO THERE ISN'T A QUESTION OF OUR QUALIFYING FOR DEBBIE SMITH ACT MONEY, BUT THERE STILL IS THIS 
          [00:10:01]
AROUND PAUL COVERDALE. 
          SO THE IDEA HERE IS TO JUST REMOVE THAT LANGUAGE. 
          IT'S, IT'S NOT ESSENTIAL THAT IT'S IN OUR FORMATION DOCUMENT. 
          IT CLEARLY CREATES A PROBLEM FOR DOJ AND THEIR INTERPRETATION OF WHAT WE ARE. 
          AND IT WOULD, THIS WOULD SOLVE AND ALLOW US TO QUALIFY FOR PAUL COVERDALE. 
          I'M PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN COVERDALE MONEY BECAUSE IT IS BASICALLY THE ONLY FEDERAL FUNDING THAT WE CAN EASILY APPLY TO SOMETHING OTHER THAN DNA. 
          UM, SO WE CAN APPLY FOR THAT FOR MONEY. 
          AND, AND THIS CAME UP JUST RECENTLY BECAUSE DPS HAS USED COVERDALE FUNDING FOR LICENSES AND RESOURCES FOR MULTIMEDIA. 
          COVERDALE CAN BE USED FOR STUFF LIKE THAT. 
          IT'S THE ONLY PROGRAM THAT THERE IS. 
          IT'S NOT HUGE MONEY. 
          IT'S PROBABLY THE TYPICAL AWARD SIZE IS, YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED TO $300,000. 
          BUT FOR US, THAT'S REAL MONEY AND A REAL ABILITY TO USE SOME OF THAT MONEY TO DO OTHER THINGS THAT WE JUST HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DO. 
          SO THAT'S, IT'S, IT'S FAIRLY SIMPLE CHANGE. 
          IT'S JUST DELETING THAT LANGUAGE OUT. 
          BUT THAT'S KIND OF THE BACKGROUND OF WHY WE ARE TRYING TO DO THIS AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT IT. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          I GUESS MY EXPLANATION WORKED , WE DO HAVE SOMEONE FROM CITY LEGAL HERE, IF ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS AS WELL. 
          UM, YEAH. 
          ON THAT NEXT STEP. 
          SO WE, WE NEED TO CHANGE THIS LANGUAGE AND THEN IT'LL GO TO CITY COUNCIL FOR THEM TO APPROVE IT ON CITY COUNCIL SIDE. 
          WAS THERE A CONVERSATION ABOUT, WAS IT INITIALLY INCLUDED IN, UM, AND ARE SORT OF DOCUMENTS FOR ANY PURPOSE RELATED TO THE TAX EXEMPT STATUS? IS THAT GONNA HAVE ANY TYPE OF IMPLICATION ON THAT? IT SHOULDN'T HAVE ANY IMPACT ON THAT AS WE'VE DISCUSSED IT. 
          WHY IT'S IN THERE. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          THAT WAS A CONVERSATION LONG AGO AND FAR AWAY PROBABLY IN ABOUT 2012. 
          UM, THAT, I DON'T KNOW IF MAYBE THE CITY'S GOT TRACY OR IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS WHY THAT LANGUAGE IS IN THERE ORIGINALLY. 
          OH, THERE WE GO. 
          HI, I'M RASHAD GAMBRELL. 
          I'M IN THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT. 
          I WORK FOR TRACY CALABRESE. 
          UM, WE DID DO THAT RESEARCH. 
          WE TRIED TO IDENTIFY WHERE THE LANGUAGE CAME FROM. 
          , THERE'S A LOT OF SIMILAR LANGUAGE IN, UH, CHAPTER 5 51, UM, THAT DEALS WITH DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONS. 
          THERE ARE SIM THERE IS SIMILAR LANGUAGE, UM, LURKING IN THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. 
          BUT I THINK THE, THE MAIN POINT IS, IS THAT SUBCHAPTER D OF CHAPTER 4 31 OF THE TRANSPORTATION CODE KIND OF LAYS OUT WHAT LOCAL GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS ARE. 
          IT DIRECTS THEIR CREATION. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE AMENDMENTS TO THEIR CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION IS COVERED UNDER CHAPTER 3 94 OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. 
          BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY IN THAT PROVISION, SECTION 3 94 0 14 A, I BELIEVE NOTHING IN THAT PROVISION IDENTIFIES THAT THIS LANGUAGE MUST EXIST IN THE CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION OR ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION. 
          UM, WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND HERE IS THAT, YOU KNOW, AS, AS MR. SOUTH JUST SAID, WE'RE TRYING TO REMOVE THIS LANGUAGE, BUT IT DOESN'T CHANGE THE NATURE OF THE ENTITY AT ALL. 
          IT STILL MAKES IT CLEAR THAT IT IS A SEPARATE LEGAL ENTITY FROM THE CITY OF HOUSTON. 
          UM, BUT WHERE IT CAME FROM, WHY IT WAS INSERTED, UM, WE CAN ALL SPECULATE. 
          I'VE LOOKED AT IT, I'VE WORKED WITH MS. MANZ ON IT, AND I JUST CAN'T SAY WITH ANY CERTAINTY THAT IT HAD TO BE THERE BECAUSE IT'S NOT REQUIRED BY THE STATUTE IN THE ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION. 
          UM, BUT WHY IT'S THERE AND WHAT WAS THE RATIONALE? I JUST SIMPLY CAN'T ANSWER THAT QUESTION FOR YOU. 
          I HAD NO INVOLVEMENT WITH IT AND ONLY BECAME RECENTLY INVOLVED WHEN THIS AMENDMENT WAS BROUGHT ABOUT. 
          SO IF THAT'S HELPFUL AT ALL, IT IS. 
          I DON'T KNOW, IN 25 YEARS OF WORKING WITH GOVERNMENTS, I'VE NEVER SEEN SOMETHING SHOW UP IN A DOCUMENT THAT NOBODY CAN EXPLAIN THAT. 
          THAT JUST NEVER HAPPENS. 
           HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? I WOULD ONLY ADD THAT NEXT STEPS. 
          IF THIS IS APPROVED BY THE BOARD, THERE WOULD BE A RESOLUTION DRAFTED, UM, A RESOLUTION THAT WOULD BE APPROVED HERE, AS WELL AS THE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS WITHIN GO TO CITY COUNCIL FOR THEIR CONSIDERATION. 
          IF THEY APPROVE THAT RESOLUTION, THEN IT WOULD ALL BE FILED WITH THE SECRETARY OF STATE AND THE, UH, THE CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION OR ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION, HOWEVER YOU CHOOSE TO, TO IDENTIFY IT, WOULD THEN BE AMENDED. 
          UM, I DON'T HAVE A PROJECTED, UM, COUNSEL AGENDA DATE WHEN THAT WOULD OCCUR. 
          UM, BUT AFTER THIS BODY TAKES ACTION, IT WOULD MOVE TO THAT STEP. 
          SO IF I COULD SUGGEST IN THAT A TIMELINE, WE PROBABLY OFTEN COVERDALE FUNDING AS A, AS A SOLICITATION DROPS IN ABOUT MARCH-ISH. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, IF WE COULD ARRANGE THAT SUCH THAT WE COULD RELIABLY 
          [00:15:01]
APPLY FOR IT, THAT'D BE MARVELOUS. 
          I, I CERTAINLY CAN'T SPEAK FOR THE ADMINISTRATION, BUT I WOULD NOT IMAGINE THERE WOULD BE THAT MUCH OF A DELAYED TIMELINE HERE. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          WONDERFUL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YOU'RE WELCOME. 
          NO PROBLEM. 
          UM, OKAY. 
          UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? OKAY. 
          SINCE THERE ARE NONE, UH, WE WILL NOW HAVE A VOICE VOTE TO APPROVE THE RESOLUTION FOR THE PROPOSED FOURTH AMENDMENT TO THE CORPORATION'S CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION AMENDING ARTICLE 13, SUBJECT TO CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL. 
          UM, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE RESOLUTION AS PRESENTED? A DIRECTOR MOORE, UH, MADE THE MOTION. 
          SECOND. 
          SECOND. 
          A DIRECTOR VAZQUEZ SECONDED. 
          UH, ALL IN FAVOR A. 
          AYE. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY, THE MOTION CARRIES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WE WILL GET AFTER WORKING WITH THE CITY ON THE RESOLUTION. 
          ALRIGHT, WONDERFUL. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, UH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS THE REPORT FROM DR. PETER STOUT, OUR CEO AND PRESIDENT. 
          THIS WILL INCLUDE A REPORT ON PROGRESS TOWARDS ANNUAL CORPORATE GOALS, TECHNICAL UPDATES, OUTREACH EFFORTS, STAFFING CHANGES, AND OTHER CORPORATE BUSINESS ITEMS. DR. STOUT, I TURN IT OVER TO YOU. 
          ALRIGHTY. 
          I AM GONNA BE SHORT THIS MARKET DOWN. 
          THIS MAY BE THE ONE MEETING THAT I'M ONE OF THE SHORTER REPORTS IN. 
          HOW MANY OF THESE MEETINGS WE'VE HAD. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          WE GOT THE SLIDES ON THE SCREEN THERE. 
          WELL, IF NOT, UH, FIRST THING I'VE GOT IN YOUR PACKAGE THERE IS JUST A FEW OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS. 
          UH, ERICA IN HER REPORT, WE'LL TALK IN MORE DETAIL, PARTICULARLY ABOUT THE TOP HIGHLIGHT THERE. 
          WE CONTINUE TO BE AN ACCREDITED LABORATORY. 
          WE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED ALL OF THE ACCREDITATION, UM, THE AUDIT THAT WE HAD AND HAVE CLEANED UP ALL THE LAST ITEMS ON THAT. 
          SO WE ARE OFFICIALLY REACCREDITED ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION. 
          UM, THAT'S A BIG DEAL. 
          THAT'S AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF WORK FOR QUALITY. 
          UM, AND IT IS NOT, IT'S NOT A FOREGONE CONCLUSION THAT REACCREDITATION IS JUST HANDED BACK OUT. 
          UM, SO THAT'S, THAT'S A, THAT'S A BIG DEAL. 
          AND I DO WANNA DEFINITELY ACKNOWLEDGE ALL OF THE WORK OF THE LABORATORY AND ALL OF THE WORK OF QUALITY AND PARTICULARLY ERICA OUT THERE. 
          'CAUSE THAT'S, THAT'S A BIG DEAL. 
          UM, OTHER FAIRLY BIG DEAL IS OUR LATENT AND TOXICOLOGY BACKLOGS ARE NOW BOTH RIGHT AROUND A THOUSAND. 
          KIND OF DEPENDS ON THE DAY OF THE WEEK. 
          THEY MAY EVEN DIP BELOW A THOUSAND. 
          THAT'S ALSO AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF PROGRESS. 
          UH, NOT, BUT ABOUT A YEAR AGO LATENT WAS WELL UP OVER 2000 AND TOXICOLOGY WAS KNOCKING ON THE DOOR OF 2000. 
          UM, SO THEY'VE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS ON THOSE. 
          NOW I WILL POINT OUT THE TOXICOLOGY BACKLOG. 
          AND REMEMBER WE HAVE ARPA DOLLARS THAT WE'VE BEEN USING TO OUTSOURCE THE LABORATORY COMPONENT OF THAT. 
          AND WE'VE HAD THESE DISCUSSIONS BEFORE. 
          WHEN WE OUTSOURCE STUFF THAT DOESN'T OUTSOURCE ALL OF THE POTENTIAL WORK, THERE IS ALWAYS STUFF THAT HAS TO COME BACK TO US AND WE STILL HAVE TO DO ON THAT WORK. 
          AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'VE GOT IN TOXICOLOGY RIGHT NOW. 
          REALLY, THAT BACKLOG IS NO LONGER AN OUTSOURCING BACKLOG. 
          THAT BACKLOG IS NOW A REVIEW BACKLOG AND WE HAVE THE DATA BACK AND IT IS WITH OUR PEOPLE NOW TRYING TO GET THE REPORTS WRITTEN. 
          AND IT'S SO, SO IT'S BACK ON OUR LIMITED STAFF BEING ABLE TO REVIEW THROUGH THOSE AND GET THOSE OUT. 
          UM, AND THIS IS, WE'VE RUN INTO THIS, WE'VE STRUGGLED WITH THIS FOR YEARS IN BIOLOGY. 
          UM, THIS IS ALWAYS THE CASE OF OUTSOURCING. 
          IT'S NOT AS THOUGH WE CAN JUST PUSH A BUTTON, SEND IT ELSEWHERE AND IT'S MAGICALLY DONE. 
          THEN THE LAST ONE, CSU HAS MADE REMARKABLE PROGRESS ON THEIR BACKLOG OF REPORTS. 
          UM, THEY HAVE COINED THE TERM FOR THEIR EFFORT HERE IS PROJECT MACHETE AND THEY'VE BEEN HACKING AWAY AT IT. 
          THEY ARE NOW BELOW 300 WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN UP OVER 700 PREVIOUSLY. 
          SO THAT'S REALLY PRETTY REMARKABLE PROGRESS AS WELL THERE. 
          AND I DID WANT TO POINT OUT, I'VE GOT A, UM, ACTUALLY I'M ON THE CALENDAR TO TALK WITH THE FELONY COURT JUDGES ON DECEMBER 7TH. 
          BUT, UM, I KNOW ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT WILL BE THERE IS SEIZE DRUG AND DRUG CASE CHALLENGES BECAUSE WE STILL HAVE A BACKLOG THERE. 
          WE STILL HAVE FOUR ANALYSTS THAT ARE SIGNED OFF AND ACTUALLY ABLE TO SIGN OUT CASE WORK. 
          WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF THEM IN TRAINING, AND AS WE'VE TALKED BEFORE, IT IS A LONG ARC TO GET PEOPLE TO A POINT WHERE THEY ARE SIGNED OFF TO BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY GET REPORTS OUT THE DOOR AND TESTIFY. 
          UM, BUT THOSE FOUR ANALYSTS, WE'VE GOT ONE 
          [00:20:01]
OF THEM THAT IS WORKING ON MARIJUANA CASES. 
          AND I'M SURE PART OF THAT CONVERSATION WITH THE FELONY COURT JUDGES IS GONNA BE THE BALANCE OF WHICH DO WE PRIORITIZE A MISDEMEANOR CLASS C THAT FORMS THE PROBABLE CAUSE FOR A SEARCH THAT YIELDS A WEAPON OR A FELONY LEVEL TRAFFICKING CHARGE OF MARIJUANA. 
          IT'S GOTTA GO THROUGH THE SAME PERSON. 
          WHERE DO WE HAVE THAT ONE PERSON SPEND THEIR TIME? UM, AND I'M NOT SURE THE BALANCE OF THAT, BUT I'M AT LEAST ENCOURAGED THAT THE CONVERSATION IS NOW ROUTINELY INCLUDING THE PRESIDING ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGES OF THE COURTS ROUTINELY, INCLUDING THE DA'S OFFICE ROUTINELY, INCLUDING HPD. 
          'CAUSE THERE THERE'S NO WAY TO SOLVE IT UNLESS ALL OF US ARE AT THE TABLE TALKING ABOUT IT. 
          SO I'M, I'M ENCOURAGED THAT WE SEEM TO HAVE FOUND A PACE OF ACTUALLY HAVING EVERYBODY AT THE TABLE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SOLVE THIS. 
          SO THOSE ARE KIND OF THE UPDATES FOR, LET'S SEE. 
          THE PART I'VE GOT FOR TODAY, WELL, ACTUALLY WE'LL START ON THAT SLIDE. 
          UM, TWO MEETINGS BACK. 
          Y'ALL APPROVED THE CORPORATE GOALS FOR THIS UPCOMING EVALUATION CYCLE. 
          AND JUST A LITTLE REMINDER OF THOSE THAT WE'VE GOT, AND WE HAVE HAD FOR A WHILE A GOAL AROUND THE INTERACTIONS WITH PERSONNEL. 
          SO THE ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS TRY AND REALLY HAVE MADE A CONCERTED EFFORT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS TO DRIVE IMPROVING THAT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MANAGEMENT AND INDIVIDUAL STAFF. 
          AND SO WE, I THINK WE HAVE MADE REALLY GOOD PROGRESS ON THAT. 
          BUT WE'VE GOT A GOAL, AGAIN, AROUND COMPLETING THOSE ONE-ON-ONES. 
          WE MODIFIED OUR, UM, VOLUNTARY TURNOVER RATE GOAL TO BE BETWEEN 12 AND 15%. 
          WE HAVE HAD THAT GOAL BELOW 12% FOR YEARS, AND WE HAVE VERY SUCCESSFULLY STAYED BELOW THAT 12% UNTIL THIS LAST YEAR. 
          UM, AND I DON'T FORESEE THAT SHIFTING, ACTUALLY. 
          I WAS JUST TALKING WITH A BUNCH OF FOLKS FROM CHICAGO PD AND A COUPLE WEEKS AGO WITH LAB DIRECTORS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY AT SOCIETY OF FORENSIC TOXICOLOGISTS MEETING. 
          EVERYBODY IS STRUGGLING WITH THIS. 
          UM, SOME FOLKS HAVE TURNOVER RATES UPWARDS OF 25, 30% WE'RE, WE'RE AT 13 POINT A HALF, SO WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING PRETTY GOOD. 
          BUT FOR US, THAT'S A PAINFUL TURNOVER RATE. 
          BUT SO WE'VE MODIFIED THAT TO BE A LITTLE HIGHER. 
          UM, IT IS AN ONGOING CONCERN FOR US. 
          UH, WE KEPT THE SAME 16 HOUR REQUIREMENT THAT ALIGNS WITH OSAC STANDARDS AND WITH THE STATE REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION. 
          AND THEN THE BIGGEST ONE THAT WE SHIFTED AROUND, WE TALKED ABOUT THIS LAST TIME, WAS THE PRODUCTION GOALS. 
          THAT EACH OF THE SECTIONS WILL CREATE, UM, A PRODUCTION GOAL. 
          AND REALLY THE OVERARCHING CORPORATE GOAL IS THE NUMBER OF SECTIONS THAT HIT THEIR GOAL. 
          AND THE 14 THERE IS BECAUSE THIS INCLUDES ALL OF THE SUPPORT SECTIONS. 
          SO IT AND HR AND FINANCE AS WELL AS THE TECHNICAL SECTIONS. 
          BECAUSE IF IT IS NOT HITTING THEIR GOALS, IT'S GONNA BE REALLY TOUGH FOR THE TECHNICAL SECTIONS TO HIT THEIR GOALS. 
          WE HAVE TRIED A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT WAYS OF DOING THIS. 
          WE SEEM TO CONTINUE TO STUMBLE INTO PROBLEMS WITH HOW DO WE BALANCE THESE PRODUCTION GOALS. 
          AND ACTUALLY, IF WE LOOK AT WHAT WE ACHIEVED FOR 21, 22, SINCE MY EVALS TODAY, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT HOW WE FARED ON OUR CORPORATE LEVEL GOALS. 
          UM, THAT ONE-ON-ONE, WE GAVE OURSELVES A RATING OF THREE BECAUSE WE, UH, COMPLETED JUST OVER NINE, WELL, ALMOST 92% OF THE MID-YEAR REVIEWS. 
          AND A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE SECTIONS COMPLETED AT LEAST 80% OF THEIR MONTHLY ONE-ON-ONES. 
          SO, SO WE ACHIEVED THAT GOAL. 
          UM, THE TURNOVER RATE, AS I WAS JUST SAYING, WE, WE MISSED ON THE TURNOVER RATE, WE WERE AT 13.9%, WHICH IS HIGH, THE 12%. 
          SO THAT'S WHY THE RATING OF TWO, UM, IT'S BEEN A LONG HARD YEAR ON THAT AND I, I DON'T KNOW. 
          WE'RE, WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN, BUT THIS IS A TREND THAT IS FAR LARGER THAN US. 
          UM, I HOPE IT STARTS TO TURN AROUND. 
          'CAUSE WHILE WE'RE DOING BETTER THAN A LOT OF PLACES, THAT STILL IS A SIGNIFICANT DRAIN ON US TO HAVE A TURNOVER RATE AT THAT, THAT KIND OF PACE. 
          UH, ON THE CONTINUING ED, WE GAVE OURSELVES A RATING OF 2.5 BECAUSE WE DID HAVE A FEW FOLKS THAT DIDN'T MEET THE REQUIREMENT OR THEY HAD USED, UM, IT WASN'T JUST SIMPLY A DOCUMENTATION ISSUE. 
          WE ACTUALLY HAD FOLKS THAT DIDN'T GET THERE, WHICH WAS A PROBLEM. 
          NOW FOR THIS YEAR, WE'RE ALSO MAKING SURE THAT HOW WE RECOGNIZE CONTINUING 
          [00:25:01]
EDUCATION REFLECTS THE FACT THAT WE'VE GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE IN INITIAL TRAINING. 
          SO IF THEY ARE SPENDING ALL OF THEIR TIME IN INITIAL TRAINING, WHERE IS THE TIME FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION? SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE REFLECT THAT AND DON'T, UM, CREATE A PROBLEM AND ARE ACHIEVING THIS GOAL IN THIS NEXT YEAR BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE IN INITIAL TRAINING. 
          THAT'S KIND OF, IT'S IN PART WHAT HAPPENED THIS LAST YEAR. 
          UH, IN PART IT IS, WE HAD SOME FOLKS THAT JUST DIDN'T GET THE 16 HOURS. 
          ANY QUESTIONS SO FAR? IS THERE A WAY TO INCORPORATE SOME OF THAT CONTINUING EDUCATION TRAINING INTO THEIR INITIAL TRAINING SO THAT THEY CAN GET SOME OF THOSE HOURS? IT, IT IS, I THINK, AND AMY, ERIN AND I ARE STILL TALKING ABOUT HOW WE RECORD STUFF SO THAT WE, WE MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE REFLECTED APPROPRIATELY. 
          BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT, LIKE RIGHT NOW WE'VE GOT PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THE FINE METROPOLIS OF MERIDIAN, MISSISSIPPI IN THEIR LATENT PRINT TRAINING THERE, ALWAYS ENJOY THEIR TIME IN MERIDIAN, MISSISSIPPI. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, IT IS INTENSIVE TRAINING. 
          YEAH. 
          HOW MUCH OF THAT IS CONTINUING? HOW MUCH OF THAT IS INITIAL AND HOW DO WE FAIRLY BALANCE REFLECTING THAT STUFF? RIGHT. 
          YEAH. 
          'CAUSE I CAN SEE WITH THE INITIAL, THEY'RE IN IT FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS AND MONTHS AND MONTHS. 
          YEAH. 
          THEY, THEY  THEY GET TO SPEND FIVE MONTHS IN MERIDIAN . 
          YEAH. 
          NO. 
          AND THEN I'M JUST THINKING ABOUT SOME OF, YOU KNOW, THE NEWER FOLKS, LIKE WITH TRYING TO GET PEOPLE VALIDATE OR YEP. 
          ON MACHINERY AND SUCH AND HAVING TO LEARN ALL THAT, DEMONSTRATE THEIR PROFICIENCY. 
          YES. 
          AND THAT CAN BE QUITE, UM, IT CAN BE A LENGTHY PROCESS. 
          YES. 
          AND THAT CAN IMPACT THEIR ABILITY TO GET CONTINUING EDUCATION. 
          CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          SO THE PRODUCTION GOALS, UH, WE ACTUALLY GAVE OURSELVES A RATING OF THREE BECAUSE REMEMBER THIS LAST TIME WE TRIED TO ESTABLISH IT AS AN ANALYSIS TURNAROUND TIME. 
          SO THE, THE TIME THAT IS MUCH MORE CONTROLLABLE BY US, THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT IT SPENDS IN THE ANALYTICAL TIMEFRAME. 
          WE WERE LONG OF WHAT WE TARGETED, WE HAD TARGETED 23. 
          WE WERE AT 32 DAYS, WHICH IS STILL PRETTY GOOD, BUT IT WAS LONGER THAN THE TARGET THAT WE GAVE. 
          UM, BUT WE DID SEE AN ALMOST 18% DECREASE IN THE BACKLOG. 
          SO OF THE TWO COMPONENTS OF THAT GOAL, WE MISSED ON ONE, WE HIT ON THE OTHER ONE. 
          THAT'S WHY WE SET A THREE. 
          AND THEN THAT BASICALLY THE SAME THING WENT FOR THE SUPPORT SECTIONS THAT WE DIVIDED THAT OUT. 
          THEY EACH HAD INDIVIDUAL GOALS. 
          UM, THERE WERE A COUPLE SECTIONS THAT THERE WERE SECTIONS THAT KNOCKED IT OUTTA THE PARK AND A COUPLE SECTIONS THAT DIDN'T QUITE MAKE IT. 
          SO AGAIN, A THREE THERE. 
          SO OVERALL THAT WAS WHAT WE RATED OURSELVES AT THE CORPORATE LEVEL. 
          ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT? ALL RIGHT. 
          MARK IT DOWN. 
          THAT'S GOTTA BE A RECORD TIME FOR ME. 
          . 
          OKAY. 
          YES, IT WAS RECORD TIME . 
          OKAY. 
          UM, ALRIGHT. 
          OUR NEXT AGENDA ITEM IS AGENDA ITEM EIGHT, WHICH IS THE EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS DR. 
          STOUT'S ANNUAL EVALUATION. 
          UM, UNLESS ANYONE HAS ANY OBJECTION, I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE EXECUTIVE SESSION TO THE END AND THEN WE JUST CONTINUE WITH THE OTHER ITEMS ON THE AGENDA AND THEN COME BACK AND DO EXECUTIVE SESSION AFTER THAT. 
          IS THAT OKAY? OKAY. 
          I'M SEEING A BUNCH OF HEAD YES. 
          SHAKING YES. 
          NOW, NOW I KNOW WHY IT'S SO SHORT. 
          . 
          I KNOW. 
          . 
          YES. 
          OKAY. 
          SO, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE CONSENSUS TO MOVE THE EXECUTIVE SESSION. 
          SO I'M GONNA MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM. 
          AS I ROLL DOWN HERE ON MY PIECE OF PAPER TO, WE'RE GONNA JUMP TO NUMBER 10, WHICH IS THE DISCUSSION REGARDING THE CORPORATION'S TECHNICAL ADVISORY GROUP OR THE TAG AS WE, AS WE REFER TO IT, INCLUDING MEMBERSHIP COMPOSITION, FUTURE ADVISEMENT TO THE CORPORATION, AND OTHER PURPOSES FOR WHICH THE TAG WAS CREATED. 
          SO THIS ITEM IS BACK ON THE AGENDA TODAY TO CONTINUE OUR DISCUSSION REGARDING THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY GROUP. 
          AT OUR LAST MEETING, THE BOARD REQUESTED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE TAG AND ITS MEMBERS WITH OUR GENERAL COUNSEL. 
          UH, SHE, SHE WAS ABLE TO MAKE THAT AVAILABLE TO US. 
          UM, THERE'S NOTHING TODAY THAT WE WILL BE, UH, VOTING ON, BUT WE ARE JUST GONNA CONTINUE THAT DISCUSSION. 
          I WANTED TO GIVE THE BOARD ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS REGARDING THE TAGS COMPOSITION AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, POTENTIAL NEW MEMBERS AND IDEAS ON HOW WE MIGHT, EXCUSE ME, INCREASE OPPORTUNITIES TO ENGAGE THEM MORE. 
          DR. STOUT HAS PROPOSED A FEW AREAS OF EXPERTISE FOR US TO CONSIDER AND WE HOPE TO BEGIN LOOKING AT POTENTIAL OF, UH, ADDITIONAL MEMBERS IN THE UPCOMING MONTHS. 
          IF ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS FOR POTENTIAL CANDIDATES, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. 
          [00:30:03]
UM, ONCE WE HAVE A FEW OTHER ME, UH, NAMES TO CONSIDER, WE'LL BRING THEM BACK TO THE BOARD FOR CONSIDERATION AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH OUR CERTIFICATE OF FORM, FORMULA FORMATION AND RESOLUTION 2015 DASH 0 0 3. 
          IF YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO MIGHT BE A GOOD FIT, LET ME KNOW. 
          REMEMBER, THE TAG MEMBERS DO NOT NEED TO LIVE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON OR IN THE STATE OF TEXAS AND DO NOT NEED TO BE FORENSIC EXPERTS. 
          UM, THEY JUST NEED TO HAVE A SPECIALTY THAT WILL HELP US, UM, EITHER DEVELOP PROGRAMS OR PROVIDE GUIDANCE ON CURRENT PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES THAT WE HAVE. 
          WE MAY A APPOINT UP TO NINE MEMBERS. 
          AND AT THIS TIME WE CURRENTLY HAVE SIX MEMBERS. 
          UM, I, ON THAT NOTE, I DO WANNA RECOGNIZE THREE OF OUR FORMER TAG MEMBERS FOR THEIR EXTRAORDINARY SERVICE TO THE LAB. 
          BEFORE I OPEN THE FLOOR TO, UH, UP TO THE BOARD FOR DISCUSSION, THESE THREE MEMBERS HAVE RECENTLY DECIDED TO ROLL OFF THE TAG AND I WANTED TO EXPRESS HFS C'S, SINCERE GRATITUDE TO DR. 
          ROBIN COTTON, DR. 
          ANTONIO KOS, WHO SERVED FOR 10 YEARS TO MR. STEFAN GERARD, WHO SERVED FOR SIX YEARS. 
          THEY ALL HAVE PLAYED INSTRUMENTAL ROLES IN GUIDING OUR MISSION WITH THEIR INSIGHTS AND UNIQUE EXPERTISE. 
          WE WILL, WE WILL BE SENDING THEM A CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION IN THE MAIL SOON. 
          AND WE HAVE THIS LOVELY CERTIFICATE THAT I JUST SIGNED TODAY. 
          SO, UM, 'CAUSE I THOUGHT IT, I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT THEY GET SOMETHING FROM US TO SAY THANK YOU AND THAT THE CERTIFICATE, IT'S LITTLE SOMETHING, BUT AT LEAST IT WILL ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS AND, AND, AND THEIR EXPERTISE AND HOW THEY'VE HELPED US. 
          ALRIGHT, SINCE MANY OF YOU HAVE NOT HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO MEET THEM, I WANTED TO BRIEFLY SHARE A BACKGROUND ON EACH MEMBER. 
          UH, DR. COTTON IS A PROFESSOR IN THE ANATOMY AND NEUROBIOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY, WHERE SHE ALSO SERVES AS DIRECTOR OF THE BIOMEDICAL FORENSIC SCIENCES PROGRAM. 
          HER AREAS OF EXPERTISE INCLUDE FREE FORENSIC DNA TESTING OF EVIDENCE IN CRIMINAL CASES, DNA EXTRACTION METHODS, AND DNA SEPARATION. 
          DR. 
          MICKOS IS A BIOMEDICAL ENGINEER WHO, WHO IS THE LEWIS CALDER PROFESSOR OF BIOENGINEERING AND CHEMICAL AND BIOMOLECULAR ENGINEERING. 
          ALSO, HE'S AT RICE UNIVERSITY. 
          HE SPECIALIZES IN BIOMATERIALS DRUG DELIVERY AND TISSUE ENGINEERING. 
          AND LASTLY, MR. GERARD OPERATES BP'S INNOVATIVE LAB, WHICH DESIGNS AND IMPLEMENTS VIRTUALIZATION AND STORAGE AND PROVIDES NETWORK SOLUTIONS. 
          MR. ARD OVERSAW THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF BP'S STATE-OF-THE-ART DATA CENTER, WHICH HAS USED HIGH PERFORMANCE COMPUTING SINCE 2013. 
          I WOULD LIKE TO THANK EACH OF YOU FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTION, YOUR TIME AND EFFORT IN SERVING ON THIS ADVISORY BOARD. 
          WE WILL CERTAINLY MISS WORKING WITH YOU AS A TAG MEMBER, BUT WE LOOK FORWARD TO STAYING IN TOUCH WITH EACH OF YOU. 
          WITH THAT, I OPEN THE FLOOR FOR ANY COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD REGARDING POTENTIALLY RE-ENGAGING THIS GROUP AND ANY NEW MEMBERS THAT WE, THAT YOU WOULD LIKE FOR US TO CONSIDER FOR APPOINTMENT. 
          IS THERE ANY INFORMATION IN WHAT WE WERE GIVEN IN TERMS OF THE MEM OTHER MEMBERS AND THEIR EXPERTISE? YES. 
          ON THE, THAT WAS SENT OUT ON THE WEBSITE? YES. 
          YES, YES. 
          AQUILA SENT OUT AN EMAIL. 
          AND THEN, UM, I BELIEVE THERE'S ALSO INFORMATION ON THE WEBSITE YES. 
          THAT IDENTIFIES EACH PERSON. 
          I'M NOT REMEMBERING DR. STOUT. 
          I THINK YOU HAD A COUPLE OF IDEAS FOR, UM, I THOUGHT YOU HAD, UH, I BELIEVE YOU HAD SOME IDEAS OR SOME THOUGHTS ON SOME ADDITIONAL MEMBERS. 
          YEAH, I'VE GOT A, I I'VE HAD SOME REALLY PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS WITH A COUPLE OF FOLKS IN THE HUMAN FACTORS AREA. 
          UM, ONE IN PARTICULAR, UH, DR. 
          ADELE QUIGLEY MCBRIDE, WHO SHE'S A POSTDOC WITH AT DUKE UNIVERSITY. 
          UM, AND SHE CURRENTLY IS A CO-CHAIR OF THE OSAC HUMAN FACTORS SUBSECTION. 
          UM, I THINK SOMEBODY IN THAT HUMAN FACTORS AREA COULD BE A REALLY BENEFICIAL WAY FOR US TO HAVE A LINK TO THAT AREA. 
          THE HUMAN FACTORS SECTION IS A LOT OF, WHERE YOU HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT COGNITIVE BIASES, HOW LABORATORIES BETTER TRY TO ADDRESS AND CONTROL FOR COGNITIVE BIASES. 
          UM, AND SHE'S GOT QUITE A BIT OF RESEARCH IN THAT AREA AND I'VE, I'VE FOUND HER PRETTY EASY TO WORK WITH. 
          UM, SO I THINK SHE MIGHT BE A GOOD, I'VE ASKED HER ABOUT IT. 
          SHE SOUNDS LIKE SHE COULD BE INTERESTED. 
          UM, HER ADVISOR IS BRANDON GARRETT AND I CAN REACH OUT TO HIM AND CHAT WITH HIM THAT HE WOULD BE, I'M, I'M 
          [00:35:01]
SURE HE'D BE INTERESTED IN SEEING HER PARTICIPATE. 
          UH, THE OTHER THAT I THINK WOULD BE REALLY BENEFICIAL FOR US IS A STATISTICIAN. 
          AND I THINK THERE EVEN SOMEBODY THAT'S LIKE A BIOINFORMATICIST COULD BE BENEFICIAL THERE. 
          THERE'S A, THERE'S A VARIETY OF PEOPLE FROM A STATISTICAL STANDPOINT THAT COULD BE BENEFICIAL. 
          UH, CLIFF SPIEGELMAN WAS THE, ONE WAS THE STATISTICIAN THAT WE HAD PREVIOUSLY AND I, I SPENT A LOT OF TIME TALKING WITH CLIFF. 
          UH, 'CAUSE THERE'S ANY NUMBER OF PLACES WHERE STATISTICAL INPUT IS REALLY HELPFUL AND SOMEBODY WITH A STATISTICAL BACKGROUND IS ALSO HELPFUL THOUGH. 
          I, I WILL SAY IN ALL OF THE YEARS OF MY DEALING WITH STATISTICIANS, I AM ALWAYS USED THE WRONG STATISTICAL ANALYSIS REGARDLESS OF WHAT I'VE DONE. 
          I'VE NEVER HAD ENOUGH DATA. 
          UH, THAT SEEMS TO BE ALWAYS THE CASE WITH THE STATISTICIAN, BUT IT CAN BE REALLY HELPFUL TO HAVE THAT UNDERSTANDING. 
          UM, AND THAT, AND SOMEBODY TO BOUNCE THOSE IDEAS OFF OF AND BE ABLE TO CHECK ARE, ARE WE THINKING ABOUT THIS CORRECTLY? BUT I, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF STATUS STATISTICIANS THAT WE WORK WITH, WITH THE CSAFE PROGRAM AND THOSE STATISTICIANS THAT ARE KIND OF IN THE FORENSIC AREA ARE ALMOST ALL ASSOCIATED WITH THAT PROGRAM. 
          SO I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN A STATISTICIAN THAT'S KIND OF NOT IN THAT AREA. 
          HONESTLY. 
          WE'VE GOT SO MANY UNIVERSITIES AROUND HERE. 
          YOU, YOU WOULD THINK THERE COULD BE A STATISTICIAN SOMEPLACE. 
          YEAH. 
          WE ALSO HAVE A BASEBALL TEAM THAT  IS RUN ON STATS, YOU KNOW, PRETTY SUCCESSFUL ONE. 
          MAYBE, UH, HE CAN HELP OR SHE, ANY OTHER THOUGHTS OR IDEAS FROM THE GROUP? I CAN SEE DIRECTOR HUFF'S MIND TURNING HERE ON, I'M THINKING THROUGH STATISTICIANS. 
          I'M NOT TRYING NAMES. 
          I'M NOT SURE A BIO MATHEMATICIAN WOULD BE WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR. 
          IT'S, IT'S, IT'S KIND OF A STRETCH OF THE BIOINFORMATICIST. 
          UM, BUT THAT IF, IF THAT IS, IF IT'S A BIOINFORMATICIST THAT'S INTERESTED IN FOR WHATEVER REASON, THINKS THERE'S OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST IN FORENSICS, I THINK IT WOULD BE PERFECTLY A PERFECTLY GOOD FIT. 
          AND I SAY THAT JUST 'CAUSE IT'S, I THINK IT'S EASY TO DISCOUNT THINKING ABOUT SOMEBODY LIKE THAT WHEN YOU'RE THINKING THE STATISTICAL HELP THAT WE NEED. 
          RIGHT. 
          I GUESS MY, MY INTERACTIONS WITH BIOINFORMATICIANS, THEY'RE MORE PIPELINE ANALYSIS OF DNA SEQUENCING, THAT TYPE OF THING. 
          YEAH. 
          RATHER THAN REALLY BEING STATISTICIAN. 
          YEAH. 
          SO IT'S KIND OF WHAT YOU WOULD, WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. 
          BUT ONE OF THE BIG STATISTICAL CHALLENGES THAT WE HAVE IS PROBABILISTIC GENOTYPING IN DNA AND I, THAT KIND OF PROBABILISTIC ANALYSIS IS GONNA START SHOWING UP ELSEWHERE. 
          AND HOW WE BETTER EXPLAIN THAT TO THE LAY PERSON IS A REAL CHALLENGE. 
          AND THAT THAT'S MORE THAN JUST US. 
          WE CAN TALK OFFLINE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT, BUT OKAY. 
          OR THE OTHER PERSON, THE FIRST PERSON THAT YOU MENTIONED, DO YOU HAVE A CV THAT MAYBE YOU CAN YES. 
          SEND YES, I DO. 
          WE CAN TO THE MEMBERS. 
          ILL GET THAT TO AMANDA SO SHE CAN DISTRIBUTE THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          'CAUSE THAT WOULD BE NICE TO SEE IF WE'RE GONNA YEAH. 
          SIT OR THAT PERSON. 
          YEP. 
          ARE THERE WAYS THAT WE CAN, UH, FURTHER ENGAGE THE TAG, NOT ONLY AS THE BOARD, BUT OTHER IDEAS? UM, WHEN I KNOW WHEN THE BOARD WAS INITIALLY STARTED AND THE CORPORATION WAS FORMED, THE TAG WAS VERY IMPORTANT AT THAT TIME BECAUSE THEY PROVIDED A LOT OF GUIDANCE AND STARTING UP, STARTING THE, THE LAB AND RE KIND OF REBUILDING AND THINGS TO FOCUS ON. 
          UH, AND SO THEY WERE VERY INTEGRAL DURING THOSE EARLY YEARS. 
          UM, BUT WE STILL HAVE THEM AVAILABLE 'CAUSE IT'S PART OF OUR CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION AND IT'S HOW DO WE KEEP THEM? IS THERE A WAY THAT WE CAN KEEP THEM ENGAGED? UM, OR OTHER ARE THERE THINGS THAT WE CAN, UM, UTILIZE THEIR EXPERTISE TO HELP US CONTINUE? I DON'T KNOW, UH, YOU KNOW, DOING THE BEST JOB THAT WE CAN, YOU KNOW, INCREASING QUALITY, THAT, THAT SORT OF THING. 
          AND JUST, YOU KNOW, STAYING AT THE TOP AND BEING THAT MODEL PROGRAM FOR THE NATION OR THE MODEL LAB. 
          SO. 
          SO DOES THIS GROUP, UM, HAVE AN ANNUAL MEETING OR DO THEY, IS IT SORT OF AN AD HOC SITUATION OR JUST DO YOU GO TO PARTICULAR INDIVIDUALS AS NEEDED KIND OF MORPHED INTO AN AD HOC? WHEN WE GO TO DIFFERENT, INITIALLY, I, I REMEMBER YEARS AGO WE HAD, THIS WAS WHEN I FIRST JOINED THE BOARD AND THIS WAS A LONG TIME AGO 
          [00:40:01]
THAT WE, THAT WE DID HAVE A TAG MEETING AND ALL THE TAG MEMBERS DID COME IN, UH, FOR A MEETING AND WERE AVAILABLE TO THE BOARD SO THAT THE BOARD COULD ASK QUESTIONS AND TO KIND OF TALK ABOUT A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THEIR EXPERTISE AND IN, UH, TALKING ABOUT THE LAB. 
          BUT THAT KIND WE DID THAT. 
          I KNOW I WAS HERE FOR AT LEAST ONE OR TWO OF THEM. 
          AND THEN IT'S KIND OF MORPHED INTO, WE JUST REACH OUT WHEN WE NEED THEM AND I HAVE QUESTIONS AND ALL. 
          SO I GUESS IT'S STILL UP IN THE AIR AS TO HOW DO WE WANNA DO, HOW DO WE WANT THIS TO LOOK? 'CAUSE IT'S, THEY'RE HERE FOR THE BOARD AND FOR US, AND I KNOW DR. 
          STOUT'S BEEN USING THEM QUITE A BIT WITH QUESTIONS, BUT THEY'RE HERE AS OUR RESOURCE AS WELL. 
          MM-HMM . 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          DON'T EVERYBODY TALK AT ONCE. 
          ? WELL, I, I TAKE IT THEY'RE FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY OR CAN BE. 
          THEY CAN BE. 
          UM, I THINK THE MAJORITY OF THEM WERE, WERE WERE HERE AROUND THIS AREA. 
          UM, I SUPPOSE WE COULD, COULD WE HAVE A ZOOM MEETING? I DON'T KNOW. 
          WOULD THAT FALL OUTSIDE OF WHAT'S PERMISSIBLE FOR OPEN RECORDS? I DON'T KNOW. 
          BUT IT WOULD BE HELPFUL. 
          WE CAN MAYBE MEET THEM AND UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT THEY DO AND THEY PROBABLY FEEL A LITTLE BIT MORE ENGAGED WITH THE GROUP IF WE WERE TO MEET WITH THEM. 
          I MEAN, NO NEED TO FOR THE EXPENSE OF HAVING EVERYBODY FLY IN FOR A MEETING, BUT MAYBE LEGAL CAN TAKE A LOOK AT IT TO SEE IF WE CAN HAVE A MEETING WITH THEM ZOOM WISE. 
          OKAY. 
          I WILL DO THAT. 
          I MEAN, AS OF, FOR INSTANCE, RIGHT NOW I'VE GOT AN ONGOING CONVERSATION WITH DARRELL DAVIS, UM, KIND OF ON THE SAME PIPELINE PERSONNEL PIPELINE IDEA OF IF THERE'S, UH, POST BACHELOR'S PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE THAT WE COULD ARRANGE WITH PRAIRIE VIEW FOR SEIZE DRUGS. 
          I MEAN, HE, HE CAME, HE CAME OUT OF THE DEA, SO HE'S GOT A PARTICULAR FOCUS AROUND SEIZE DRUGS. 
          I'VE TALKED WITH HIM SOME ALSO ABOUT EVIDENCE STORAGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          UM, IT'S BEEN KINDA A LONG TIME SINCE I'VE TALKED WITH JOHN TINI. 
          HE REACHES OUT OCCASIONALLY. 
          HE'S, HE'S MORE FIRE DEBRIS AND WHEN HE CAME ON WAS MORE AROUND WHEN WE WERE THINKING ABOUT UH, IGNITABLE FLUIDS. 
          UM, BUT HE COULD BE A RESOURCE IN SOME OF THE THINGS IN CRIME SCENE. 
          THOSE ARE COMMON CONVERSATIONS. 
          MICHELLE TRIPLET IS A PROMINENT PERSON IN LATENT PRINTS. 
          WE CERTAINLY HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH HER OVER THE YEARS AROUND LATENT PRINT KIND OF ISSUES. 
          UM, I THINK ALL OF OUR, I MEAN MICHELLE IS A, IS WIDELY KNOWN IN LATENT PRINCE, BUT I THINK JOHN'S IN FLORIDA. 
          MICHELLE'S UP IN THE, HE'S IN SEATTLE. 
          YEAH, MICHELLE'S UP IN SEATTLE. 
          UM, DARRELL DAVIS IS, IS HERE IN THE STATE. 
          UM, YEAH, I'VE HAD, I'VE HONESTLY, I'VE HAD FEWER CONVERSATIONS THERE. 
          THAT'S, THAT'S ONE I'VE NOT, AND PROBABLY SOMETHING SOMEBODY I SHOULD REACH OUT TO MORE, BUT I COULD, I COULD SEE IN ANOTHER SPOT THAT COULD BE HELPFUL TO US AS WE LOOK AT THESE 3D TECHNOLOGIES FOR LATENT PRINTS, UM, THERE'S A COUPLE OF FOLKS, WELL THERE'S DIVISION OF FORENSIC SCIENCES IN VIRGINIA HAS THEM THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY USING THEM IN CASE WORK. 
          FBI DOES TOO. 
          THERE MAY BE SOMEBODY THAT COULD BE A POTENTIAL FOR US THERE. 
          UM, BUT THERE'S, THERE'S SOME OF IT THAT THE FLIP OF IT IS, IS IS PEOPLE LIKE ERICA START ARE STARTING TO GET ASKED MORE TO BE ON OTHERS ADVISORY GROUPS. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A COMMON THING AND WE'RE SEEING A LOT MORE OF OTHER LABORATORIES COME TO US ASKING US QUESTIONS. 
          IT'S NOT THAT THERE'S NOT STUFF THAT WE CAN'T LEARN FROM THEM, BUT IT IS, WE GET LOOKED AT A LOT NOW AS PEOPLE WANT US ON THEIR ADVISORY BOARDS. 
          NOT SO MUCH THAT THEY'RE LOOKING TO COME BE ON OUR ADVISORY BOARDS, , BUT I WILL GET THAT, UM, ADELE'S CV TO YOU AND I'LL REACH OUT TO BRANDON GARRETT ABOUT THE OVERSIGHT THERE. 
          I, LIKE I SAY, I'M, I AM CONFIDENT BRANDON WOULD BE REALLY INTERESTED IN HER PARTICIPATING IN THAT. 
          SOUNDS GOOD. 
          ALRIGHT, WELL WE'LL CONTINUE THE DISCUSSION. 
          I WILL CHECK WITH, UH, OUR GENERAL COUNSEL ABOUT A POTENTIAL ZOOM MEETING AND THEN WE'LL REPORT BACK. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          SOUND GOOD? OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          HEARING NO ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION, WE'RE GONNA, WE WILL PROCEED 
          [00:45:01]
NOW TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS AGENDA ITEM 11. 
          UH, REPORT FROM MS. ERICA ZAC, OUR QUALITY DIRECTOR, WHICH WILL INCLUDE A RE AN OVERVIEW OF THE BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM, EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT, INTERNAL AUDIT, THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE CENTER DISCLOSURES AND OUR TESTIMONY MONITORING PROGRAM. 
          GOOD MORNING. 
          GOOD MORNING. 
          SO THE FIRST THING I WANNA START WITH IS SOME OF OUR METRICS FOR OUR BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM. 
          I HAVE BOTH FOR YOU, THE METRICS FROM SEPTEMBER AND THEN ALSO OCTOBER. 
          AND THEN I WANTED TO SHARE ABOUT A COLLABORATION THAT WE ARE PARTICIPATING IN WITH SAM HOUSTON STATE UNIVERSITY. 
          SAM HOUSTON STATE UNIVERSITY IS LOOKING TO DO RESEARCH ON DART MS TECHNOLOGY THAT'S DIRECT ANALYSIS IN REAL TIME TECHNOLOGY. 
          AND SO BY DOING THAT, WHAT THEY HAVE DONE IS REACHED OUT TO HFSC TO SEE IF THE QUALITY DIVISION CAN COLLABORATE WITH THEM IN THE SENSE THAT WHEN WE CREATE OUR SEIZES DRUGS BLINDS, WE'RE ABLE TO TAKE THOSE WEIGHING VESSELS THAT WE USE THAT ARE NORMALLY CONSUMABLES ARE DISCARDED AFTER PREPARATION, AND INSTEAD PROVIDE THEM TO THE UNIVERSITY SO THAT THEY CAN UTILIZE THIS DART MS TECHNOLOGY TO SEE IF THEY ARE ABLE TO USE THE RESIDUES LEFT ON THOSE WEIGHING VESSELS IN ORDER TO ASSIST IN CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE IDENTIFICATION. 
          I KNOW THAT'S A LOT  AND I DON'T HAVE A SEIZED DRUGS BACKGROUND. 
          UM, I WOULDN'T KNOW A DART MS IF ONE WAS SITTING IN FRONT OF ME. 
          I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT THE ACRONYM UNTIL VERY RECENTLY. 
          BUT WHAT I DO KNOW IS THAT THERE ARE FORENSIC, UH, APPLICATIONS FOR THIS TECHNOLOGY AND THAT THE QUALITY DIVISION IS VERY APPRECIATIVE OF BEING ABLE TO HELP PARTICIPATE IN THIS RESEARCH. 
          AND THAT THE IDEA THAT OUR BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAMS HAVE, UH, SORRY CASES HAVE THIS DUAL USAGE IS VERY HELPFUL TO THE FORENSIC COMMUNITY. 
          AND SO WHILE WE ARE A WAYS OUT FROM KNOWING WHERE THIS RESEARCH IS HEADING, IT IS VERY, UM, PROMISING, I WOULD SAY RESEARCH THAT'S BEING DONE. 
          AND SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO COLLABORATE WITH SAM HOUSTON STATE UNIVERSITY, UH, WITH OUR SEAS, DRUGS, BLINDS LINES. 
          ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS I CAN ANSWER AROUND BLIND QUALITY CONTROL OR EVEN OUR COLLABORATION? OKAY. 
          NEXT I WANTED TO GIVE AN UPDATE ABOUT OUR ASSESSMENT. 
          HOLD ON JUST ONE SECOND. 
          THERE WE GO. 
          OH, OKAY. 
          SO AS DR. 
          SAT HAD MENTIONED, OUR ACCREDITATION WAS RENEWED BY A NAB. 
          IT HAS BEEN CONTINUED UNTIL DECEMBER, 2026. 
          SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT AT THE CONCLUSION OF OUR ASSESSMENT, WE HAD FIVE NONCONFORMITIES THAT WE WERE TASKED WITH RESOLVING WITHIN A 60 DAY WINDOW. 
          WE HAVE RESOLVED ALL FIVE OF THOSE NONCONFORMITIES AND PROVIDED OUR OBJECTIVE EVIDENCE OF OUR RESOLUTIONS TO A NAB. 
          THEY HAVE REVIEWED ALL OF THAT DOCUMENTATION AND THEY HAVE, UH, DETERMINED THAT WE SATISFACTORILY RESOLVED ALL OF THOSE ISSUES. 
          AND SO, LIKE I SAID, THEY EXTENDED OUR ACCREDITATION UNTIL DECEMBER, 2026. 
          OUR NEXT ASSESSMENT ACTIVITY WILL BE SCHEDULED FOR JULY OF THIS UPCOMING SUMMER, BUT IT'LL BE A REMOTE ACTIVITY WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO BE, UM, REVIEWING OUR DOCUMENTATION ESSENTIALLY. 
          BUT IN PREPARATION FOR THAT NEXT ASSESSMENT ACTIVITY, THE QUALITY DIVISION PERFORMED A RISK ASSESSMENT CAPITALIZING OFF OF OUR RECENT ASSESSMENT EXPERIENCE AND TRYING TO SIT DOWN AND CRITICALLY THINK ABOUT WHAT IMPROVEMENTS WOULD WE LIKE TO MAKE MOVING FORWARD, WHAT THINGS DURING THE ASSESSMENT FLOWED NICELY AND WHAT THINGS DURING THE ASSESSMENT WERE A BIT OF A CHALLENGE AND PRESENTED MORE OF AN ISSUE THAN IT SHOULD HAVE. 
          AND THESE ARE PRETTY MUCH LOGISTICAL TYPES OF THINGS, BUT WE SAT DOWN AND EVALUATED ALL OF THOSE IN ORDER TO DECIDE WHAT CHANGES WILL WE MAKE MOVING FORWARD. 
          AND SO OUR PRIMARY CHANGE THAT I WANTED TO SHARE WITH THE BOARD WAS THE NUMBER OF ASSESSORS THAT WAS IN OUR ASSESSMENT TEAM AND ALSO THE TIME OF OUR ASSESSMENT. 
          MOST OF THE MANAGERS THAT WERE INTERVIEWED SAID THAT THEY WOULD'VE PREFERRED EITHER AN ADDITIONAL ASSESSOR ON THE TEAM OR MORE TIME FOR THE ASSESSMENT SO THAT THEY FELT AS THOUGH THEY HAD ADEQUATE TIME TO PROVIDE ALL OF THE DOCUMENTATION THAT THEY NEEDED. 
          AND THERE WOULD BE LESS OF A, MY WORDS WHIRLWIND FEEL TO THE ENTIRE ASSESSMENT. 
          AND SO I WOULD HAVE TO SAY, IN MY OPINION, HFSC WILL PROBABLY BE IN THE MINORITY IN THE SENSE THAT WE'RE A LABORATORY THAT IS ASKING NOW FOR LONGER ASSESSMENTS AND A LARGER ASSESSMENT TEAM. 
          THAT'S NOT NORMALLY WHAT LABORATORIES ADVOCATE FOR, BUT, AND IT WILL, UM, MORE ASSESSORS AND 
          [00:50:01]
LONGER ASSESSMENT. 
          UH, BOTH WILL COME AT A COST. 
          BUT I'VE HAD SEVERAL CONVERSATIONS WITH DR. STOUT AND WE FEEL AS THOUGH THAT ADDITIONAL COST WILL BE WELL WORTH IT IN THE SENSE THAT WE WANNA ENSURE THAT WE HAVE A THOROUGH ASSESSMENT AND THAT THE ASSESSORS HAVE ADEQUATE TIME TO REVIEW ALL OF OUR DOCUMENTATION. 
          WE ARE A VERY LARGE LABORATORY. 
          WE HAVE SEVEN TECHNICAL DISCIPLINES, AND BY EXTENDING THE TIME AND THE TEAM SIZE, WE WILL BE ABLE TO WALK AWAY FROM OUR NEXT ASSESSMENT FEELING AS THOUGH WE HAD ADEQUATE TIME AND THAT THE TEAM HAD ADEQUATE TIME AND THAT THE ASSESSMENT OVERALL WAS A MORE EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE PROCESS. 
          SO WE'LL BE, UM, UTILIZING THE INFORMATION THAT CRITICAL THOUGHT THAT WE PUT IN, IN OUR UPCOMING ASSESSMENTS TO ENSURE THAT THEY HAVE A MUCH, A MUCH NICER FLOW IN THE FUTURE, IS HOW I WOULD PHRASE IT. 
          UM, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS I CAN ANSWER ABOUT OUR EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT? CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE. 
          IT'S A LOT OF WORK. 
          THANK YOU TO, UH, PREPARE AND TO BE THERE ON SITE DURING THE ACCREDITATION VISIT. 
          SO CONGRATULATIONS TO QUALITY AND ALSO CONGRATULATIONS TO THE ENTIRE COMPANY BECAUSE IT TAKES EVERYONE TO PULL TOGETHER TO MAKE THIS POSSIBLE. 
          SO WONDERFUL. 
          GREAT WORK. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          UM, THEN NEXT I WOULD LIKE TO TRANSITION OVER TO OUR INTERNAL AUDIT. 
          WE HAD A STANDALONE SAFETY AND SECURITY INTERNAL AUDIT THAT TOOK PLACE FROM OCTOBER 24TH TO NOVEMBER 2ND. 
          NOW, IF THE BOARD RECALLS A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THREE YEARS AGO, WE HAD A FINDING TO ONE OF OUR SECURITY STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. 
          AND PART OF OUR ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS TO THAT FINDING WAS DETERMINING THAT WE WERE NOT LOOKING SPECIFICALLY AT OUR SAFETY PROTOCOLS AND OUR SECURITY PROTOCOLS AS A STANDALONE EVENT. 
          WE WERE INHERENTLY AUDITING BOTH WHEN WE LOOKED AT OUR TECHNICAL SECTION AUDITS, BUT WE WEREN'T LOOKING AT THE MANUALS AS A WHOLE AND TRYING TO SEE ARE WE ABIDING RIGHT? ARE WE SAYING WHAT WE DO? ARE WE DOING WHAT WE SAY? AND SO ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, WE DECIDED WE WERE GOING TO DO A STANDALONE SAFETY AND SECURITY AUDIT WHERE WE LOOK AT THE SOPS IN TOTALITY AND GO THROUGH LINE BY LINE AND DETERMINE IS THIS WHAT WE'RE DOING AND DO WE HAVE DOCUMENTATION TO SUPPORT IT? AND SO WE'VE DONE THAT. 
          NOW, LIKE I SAID, THREE YEARS IN A ROW THIS YEAR WE HAD THREE FINDINGS DURING OUR INTERNAL AUDIT. 
          WE HAD TWO FOR SAFETY AND ONE FOR SECURITY. 
          AGAIN, NONE OF THESE HAD ANY TECHNICAL IMPACT ON CASE WORK, BUT RATHER SPEAK TO THE FACT THAT NUMBER ONE, IT'S FANTASTIC THAT WE'VE MADE A DECISION TO DO THIS. 
          IT GIVES US EYES ON PROCEDURES THAT WE DON'T NORMALLY SEE EVERY DAY THROUGH CASEWORK. 
          BUT ALSO NUMBER TWO, IT HIGHLIGHTS THE IDEA THAT WHERE ARE THE OTHER PLACES IN THE COMPANY THAT WE DON'T, WE ARE NOT AUDITING OR WE DON'T HAVE EYES ON WHETHER OR NOT WE'RE DOING WHAT WE'RE SAYING. 
          SO THE QUALITY DIVISION WILL SEEK TO SEARCH OUT, OTHER WILL SEEK OUT OTHER PLACES, UH, WITHIN THE COMPANY. 
          BUT I WANTED TO SHARE WITH YOU FOR AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT I MEANT ABOUT THIS FINDINGS. 
          UM, I WILL HIGHLIGHT THE SECURITY FINDING FOR YOU SPECIFICALLY. 
          SO AT HFSC, WE HAVE A PROCESS FOR WHAT WE DO WHEN A PHYSICAL KEY TRANSFERS FROM A PERSON TO A PERSON, WE WANNA HAVE A RECORD AND DOCUMENTATION AROUND WHO HAD THAT KEY AND WHO DID THEY GIVE THAT KEY TO AND WHEN DID THEY GIVE IT TO THAT PERSON. 
          AND THAT PROCESS WAS DESIGNED WITH SINGLE KEY TRANSFERS IN MIND. 
          MEANING I HAVE A KEY TO A LABORATORY, UM, RIGHT TO THE QUALITY DIVISION LABORATORY. 
          I WANNA HAND THAT KEY TO DR. STOUT. 
          I NEED TO RECORD THAT TRANSFER HAPPENED. 
          HOWEVER, THAT PROCESS DID NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WHEN WE WERE TRANSFERRING BULK NUMBER OF KEYS. 
          SO FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR RETIRED AND HAD TO HAND OVER A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF KEYS TO ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL WITHIN THE HFSC STAFF, THEY DID NOT SIT DOWN AND USE THAT PROCESS FOR EVERY SINGLE KEY. 
          AND I WOULD ARGUE IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN EFFICIENT OR A REALISTIC GOOD USE OF TIME IN ORDER TO DO SO. 
          BUT AGAIN, THE PROCESS WASN'T DESIGNED FOR MULTIPLE KEY TRANSFERS. 
          AND SO NOW WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO NUMBER ONE, LOOK BACK AT OUR OLD PROCESS AND DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT IT'S STILL SERVING US. 
          OR NUMBER TWO, LOOK AT OUR MANUAL AND SEE DO WE NEED TO GIVE OURSELVES OTHER OPTIONS OF WAYS THAT WE WANNA HANDLE KEY TRANSFERS IN THE FUTURE? AGAIN, NOT NO TECHNICAL IMPACT TO CASEWORK, BUT STILL AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO TAKE A LOOK AT ALL OF OUR SECURITY FUNCTIONS AND DETERMINE ARE WE DOING WHAT WE SAY WE, WHAT WE SAY WE'RE DOING, OR SHOULD WE BE DOING SOMETHING DIFFERENT. 
          UM, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS I CAN ASK OR ANSWER RATHER ABOUT THE SAFETY AND SECURITY FINDINGS? 
          [00:55:03]
OKAY, THEN I'M GOING TO MOVE ON TO OUR TFSC DISCLOSURE. 
          GIMME ONE SECOND. 
          THERE WE GO. 
          SO I JUST WANNA REMIND THE BOARD, I KNOW YOU'VE SEEN SOME OF THESE SLIDES PREVIOUSLY, BUT I WANT TO JUST TELL THE STORY, IF YOU WILL, IN ITS TOTALITY AND REMIND YOU OF HOW WE GOT WHERE WE ARE TODAY. 
          SO, UM, THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION, OOPS, SORRY. 
          THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION FORMED AN INVESTIGATIVE PANEL BACK IN APRIL OF 2022 AT HSCS BEHEST. 
          WE HAD RECOGNIZED OR IDENTIFIED THAT AN HFSC ANALYST TESTIFIED IN 2017 FOR A TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY CASE. 
          IT WAS A CAPITAL MURDER CASE AND THE DEFENDANT WAS JOSEPH COLON. 
          THE ANALYST PROVIDED TESTIMONY REGARDING A 2013 EVIDENCE EXAMINATION THAT WAS PERFORMED WHILE EMPLOYED AT TEXAS DPS AND NOW FAST FORWARD A TEXAS COURT OF CRIMINAL. 
          THE TEXAS COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS ISSUED AN OPINION AND MANDATE IN MARCH, 2022. 
          OVERTURNING THAT DEATH SENTENCE CONVICTION. 
          THE OPINION FOUND THAT THE ANALYST GAVE THE JURY A FALSE IMPRESSION WHEN HE SUGGESTED THAT THERE WAS NOTHING AWRY WITH THE MANNER IN WHICH THE EVIDENCE WAS HANDLED AT TEXAS DPS. 
          OKAY, SO HFSC REQUESTED THAT TFSC ASSIST WITH OUR INVESTIGATION BECAUSE THIS INVESTIGATION SPANNED MULTIPLE ENTITIES. 
          THE ANALYST WAS EMPLOYED AT HFSC AT TIME OF TESTIMONY, HOWEVER, HE TESTIFIED FOR A CASE THAT HE WORKED WHILE HE WAS AT DPS AND CLEARLY THERE WERE ALSO OTHER AGENCIES, FOR EXAMPLE, THE PROS, THE PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE AND HFSC WASN'T POSITIONED WELL TO PERFORM THIS INVESTIGATION. 
          SO THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION AGREED TO FORM AN INVESTIGATIVE PANEL AND THEY WOULD BE CHARGED WITH, AMONG OTHER THINGS, DETERMINING IF THE ANALYST PERFORMED EITHER PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE OR COMMITTED PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT. 
          THE ANALYST WAS TERMINATED FROM HFSC IN MAY OF 2022 AND THE HARRIS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE REQUESTED REWORK OF ALL IMPACTED CASES. 
          THEY HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT SPONSORING THIS WITNESS SINCE THERE ARE DOCUMENTED CREDIBILITY ISSUES AND THEY ASKED HFSC TO, UM, REVIEW ANY CASE IN WHICH THIS ANALYST WAS INVOLVED AND WHETHER OR NOT THIS ANALYST WAS INVOLVED AS A REPORT WRITER IN THE DNA SECTION OR EVEN AS A TECHNICIAN OR IF EVEN IF THE ANALYST PERFORMED SOME FORM OF REVIEW. 
          THE HARRIS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE HAS ASKED HFSC TO REVIEW THOSE CASES AND TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTIONS TO EITHER RE-REVIEW, REWRITE, OR REWORK ALL OF THOSE CASES. 
          AND BECAUSE THE ANALYST WAS EMPLOYED AT HFSC SINCE I BELIEVE 2015, THAT IS A LARGE NUMBER OF CASES. 
          AND THE HFSC, SPECIFICALLY THE FORENSIC BIOLOGY SECTION, IS WORKING WITH THE HARRIS COUNTY DISTRICT'S OFFICE TO TRY AND DETERMINE THE APPROPRIATE PRIORITIZATION OF ALL THOSE CASES. 
          SO IN ADDITION TO ALL OF THE CASES THAT ARE NOW GOING TO TRIAL, THERE ARE CASES THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN TO TRIAL AND SO HFSC IS ALSO WORKING WITH THE HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE TO REVIEW ALL OF THOSE PREVIOUS CASES. 
          AND SO A REVIEW WILL BE DONE INITIALLY BY THE HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE TO DETERMINE IF THE DNA WAS MATERIAL IN THAT CASE. 
          AND IF IT'S DETERMINED TO HAVE BEEN MATERIAL, THEN AN IN-DEPTH CASE REVIEW WILL FOLLOW. 
          I DON'T KNOW THE OF WHAT THAT IN-DEPTH CASE REVIEW WILL LOOK LIKE YET. 
          CERTAINLY HS HFSC WANTS TO BE INVOLVED, BUT I I DON'T KNOW THAT IT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE THAT WE WOULD BE THE ONLY ENTITY INVOLVED. 
          AND SO WE WILL WAIT TO HEAR AGAIN, WE'RE COLLABORATING WITH THE PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE TO DETERMINE WHAT THAT REVIEW WILL LOOK LIKE. 
          AND TFSC WAS SLATED TO ATTEND, UH, TO, TO RELEASE THEIR FINDINGS FROM THEIR INVESTIGATION AT THE OCTOBER, 2022 MEETING. 
          AND SO I HAVE PROVIDED YOU SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS FROM THEIR INVESTIGATIVE REPORT, BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, HAS I HAVE AN ASTERISK ON MY SLIDE. 
          THIS REPORT 
          [01:00:01]
LANGUAGE IS NOT FINAL YET. 
          I'M STILL WAITING FOR THE FINAL DOCUMENT TO BE PUBLISHED ON THEIR WEBSITE. 
          I'VE BEEN CHECKING EVERY DAY. 
          I'VE CHECKED JUST THIS MORNING BEFORE THE BOARD MEETING. 
          IT'S NOT THERE YET, BUT I'M GONNA PROVIDE YOU SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS. 
          AND WHILE I BELIEVE THAT THE FINAL WORDING MAY CHANGE SLIGHTLY, THE CONTENT WILL REMAIN THE SAME. 
          SO FIRST, PRIMARILY THE ANALYST WAS FOUND PROFESSIONALLY NEGLIGENT WHEN HE APPEARED AT TRIAL UNPREPARED. 
          THE ANALYST HAD NOT REVIEWED HIS CASE RECORD AND THE ANALYST MADE STATEMENTS SUBSEQUENT TO THAT THAT IT IS HIS NORMAL PRACTICE NOT TO REVIEW HIS CASE RECORD. 
          PRIOR, PRIOR TO TRIAL, THE ANALYST WAS ALSO FOUND PROFESSIONALLY NEGLIGENT IN FAILING TO ACKNOWLEDGE DURING THE TRIAL THAT HE HAD NOT REVIEWED THE BENCH NOTES IN RESPONSE TO THE PROSECUTOR'S QUESTION REGARDING WHAT HE WOULD HAVE DONE HAD SOMETHING BEEN AWRY. 
          AND THE PANEL FOUND THAT THE ANALYST COMMITTED PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT AND VIOLATED THE CODE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY BY REFUSING TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE IMPACT THAT HIS FAILURE TO PREPARE HAD WHEN GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO SO. 
          SO WHAT ARE THE OUTPUTS OF THIS INVESTIGATIVE PANEL? WELL, NUMBER ONE IS THE ANALYST'S LICENSE. 
          SO TO REMIND YOU, HE WAS TERMINATED FROM HFSC BACK IN MAY OF 2022, BUT THE ANALYST HAS A LICENSE FROM THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION THAT IS SET TO EXPIRE ON DECEMBER 5TH, 2022. 
          THE COMMISSION VOTED TO SUSPEND THE ANALYST'S LICENSE FOR A PERIOD OF 60 DAYS, WHICH TAKES IT TO DECEMBER 6TH, 2022. 
          SO A DAY AFTER HIS LICENSE WAS SET TO EXPIRE. 
          AND THEN THE COMMISSION SAID THAT IF THE TIME COMES WHEN THE ANALYST SEEKS TO RENEW HIS LICENSE, THAT THE COMMISSION MAY DENY THAT APPLICATION OUTRIGHT OR OPT CONDITIONS, OPT FOR CONDITIONS ON THAT LICENSE AT THE TIME. 
          BUT THEY RESERVE THEIR ULTIMATE UM, DECISION OBVIOUSLY UNTIL A TIME COMES IF AND WHEN THE TIME COMES THAT HE WOULD REAPPLY FOR LICENSURE. 
          AND THEN IN ADDITION TO JUST THE ANALYST'S LICENSE, THE COMMISSION INCLUDED LANGUAGE IN THEIR REPORT THIS TIME. 
          THAT'S, THEY SAID A PRECEDENT IF YOU WILL. 
          IT'S THE FIRST TIME THEY'VE EVER DONE THIS. 
          THEY WENT AHEAD AND MADE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WERE SPECIFIC TO ALL ACCREDITED LABORATORIES WITHIN TEXAS. 
          THEY HA THEY'RE CALLING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS AND WHEN I READ THE LANGUAGE TOO, YOU'LL SEE THEY SAY SHOULD, BUT IN ESSENCE THEY HAVE ARTICULATED THAT OUR NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED ACCREDITING BODY, SO A AND A B, THE PEOPLE WHO VOTED TO EXTEND OUR ACCREDITATION UNTIL DECEMBER, I'M SORRY, UNTIL 2026, THEY WILL BE ASSESSING OUR COMPLIANCE WITH THESE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE COMMISSION AS PART OF OUR NORMAL ACCREDITATION ACTIVITIES MOVING FORWARD. 
          SO WE WILL HAVE TO DOCUMENT THAT WE'VE REVIEWED THESE RECOMMENDATIONS AND WHAT STEPS WE HAVE TAKEN TO ADDRESS THEM AND THE COMMISSION HAS ARTICULATED THAT MOVING FORWARD WHENEVER THEY HAVE AN INVESTIGATIVE REPORT, THEY WILL BE CONSIDERING AND LIKELY INCORPORATING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ALL TEXAS LABORATORIES. 
          SO WE WILL HAVE THESE IN ADDITION TO WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY, RIGHT? WHICH IS OUR NORMAL ACCREDITATION SCHEME. 
          SO I'M GONNA WALK YOU THROUGH THESE. 
          THE FIRST ONE IS THAT ACCREDITED LABORATORIES SHOULD ASSESS THE EXTENT TO WHICH THEIR EXISTING POLICIES SET CLEAR AND SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS ABOUT WHAT CONSTITUTES ADEQUATE PREPARATION FOR TRIAL. 
          SUBJECT AREAS AND SPECIFIC ITEMS SHOULD BE DESCRIBED ON A SECTION BY SECTION BASIS. 
          SO THE COMMISSION IS ASKING US TO, REQUIRING US TO SET POLICY THAT DICTATES WHAT MUST BE DONE AT A MINIMUM BEFORE ONE OF OUR ANALYSTS TESTIFIES AT TRIAL. 
          THIS VERY RELEVANT FOR US FOR SEVERAL REASONS, RIGHT? NUMBER ONE, IT WILL AVOID US EVER HAVING ANOTHER INSTANCE IN THE STATE OF TEXAS WHERE AN ANALYST TAKES THE STAND AND HASN'T PROPERLY REVIEWED THEIR CASE RECORD IN ORDER TO TESTIFY. 
          BUT IT ALSO CREATES A CIRCUMSTANCE WHERE IF AN ANALYST IS CALLED TO TESTIFY AND HASN'T BEEN PROVIDED ADEQUATE TIME TO REVIEW, THEY NOW HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO MAKE THAT INFORMATION KNOWN TO THE COURT. 
          AND IF THEY DON'T, ULTIMATELY THEIR LICENSE TO PRACTICE FORENSIC SCIENCE WITHIN THE STATE OF TEXAS COULD BE IN JEOPARDY. 
          THE SECOND RECOMMENDATION IS ACCREDITED LABORATORIES SHOULD REVIEW THEIR POLICIES AND EXIT INTERVIEW DOCUMENTATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER EXPECTATIONS ARE CLEARLY 
          [01:05:01]
STATED AND ACKNOWLEDGED. 
          EXPECTATIONS SHOULD INCLUDE THE LEVEL OF REVIEW A SECTION SHOULD UNDERTAKE OF THE CASE RECORD ORIGINALLY CREATED BY THE DEPARTING EMPLOYEE. 
          SO I SHOULD HAVE GIVEN THE CAVEAT AGAIN, PER THIS SLIDE. 
          THIS IS NOT FINAL LANGUAGE YET. 
          AND I SAY THAT ONLY BECAUSE THE FINAL REPORT HASN'T BEEN PUBLISHED. 
          AND, UM, SOME OF THE QUALITY MANAGERS FROM THE STATE OF TEXAS HAVE GOTTEN TOGETHER AND PROVIDED FEEDBACK ON THIS WORDING TO THE COMMISSION. 
          UM, SO I, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS WILL BE THE FINAL WORDING OR NOT, BUT THE CONCEPT OF THIS RECOMMENDATION IS THAT EVEN IF AN ANALYST DEPARTS FROM HFSC, THEIR OBLIGATION, THEIR LEGAL OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE TESTIMONY DOESN'T GO AWAY. 
          THEY LEGALLY HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO COME BACK AND PROVIDE TESTIMONY. 
          AND THIS SPEAKS TO WHAT THE LABORATORY'S OBLIGATIONS ARE IN MAKING SURE THAT, THAT, THAT STAFF IS AWARE OF THAT. 
          SO WE HAVE TAKEN STEPS ALREADY TO ADDRESS THIS RECOMMENDATION. 
          UM, WE HAVE CREATED WHAT WE HAVE, UH, WHAT'S CALLED A NOTICE TO DEPARTING EMPLOYEES. 
          AND SO IT SPEAKS TO, NUMBER ONE, YOUR OBLIGATION EVEN AFTER YOUR TIME OF DEPARTURE WITH HFSC. 
          BUT THEN NUMBER TWO, YOUR OBLIGATION TO, UM, ADEQUATELY PREPARE, OR IT SPEAKS TO THE IDEA THAT YOU HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO GET THAT CASE RECORD IN WHATEVER WAY, SHAPE OR FORM. 
          SO THAT STAFF IS AWARE. 
          WE HAVE TAKEN THIS DOCUMENT AND INCORPORATED INTO OUR HIRING PROCESSES SO THAT NOW WHEN YOU HAVE NEW STAFF COMING ON, THEY ARE WELL AWARE OF THIS OBLIGATION AT TIME OF BEGINNING OF HIRE, RIGHT IN THE, IN THE TRAINING PROCESS, IF NOT DURING THE ACTUAL INTERVIEW OR APPLICATION PROCESS SHORTLY THEREAFTER. 
          SO THEY KNOW WHAT THEY'RE SIGNING UP FOR, LEST THERE BE ANY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, IGNORANCE TO THAT IDEA. 
          AND THEN ALSO AT TIME OF DEPARTURE, IT WILL BE HANDED TO STAFF AGAIN SO THAT THEY ARE REMINDED YOU ARE LEAVING HFSC, BUT YOUR OBLIGATION IS STILL HERE TO THE CASEWORK THAT YOU PERFORMED WHILE YOU WERE IMPLIED. 
          AND JUST TO BE OVERLY CAUTIOUS, WE'VE ALSO PROVIDED IT TO ALL CURRENT STAFF SO THAT THEY'RE AWARE AND HAVE REQUIRED THEM TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THEY'VE RECEIVED AND, UM, UNDERSTOOD THAT DOCUMENT. 
          AND THEN THE LAST RECOMMENDATION IS, ACCREDITED LABORATORIES SHOULD REVIEW THEIR POLICY DOCUMENTATION AND ENSURE MANAGERS UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF ALLOWING EMPLOYEES FLEXIBILITY TO ATTEND PRETRIAL PREPARATION AND RELATED TESTIMONY REGARDING ANALYTICAL WORK PERFORMED ON BEHALF OF A PREVIOUS EMPLOYER TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LOCAL RULES. 
          AND SO THAT ALSO SPEAKS TO THE FACT THAT RIGHT, WE IDEALLY WOULD GET TO HIRE A STAFF MEMBER WHO HAS PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE. 
          IT DOESN'T HAPPEN ALL THE TIME IN THEIR HARD TO COME BY, BUT THAT'S THE IDEAL. 
          THEIR TRAINING PROGRAM CAN BE LESSENED IF THEY HAVE PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE. 
          HOWEVER, THAT BEING SAID, IF THEY HAVE PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE, THAT MEANS THAT THEY WORKED CASEWORK AT SOME OTHER LABORATORY. 
          THIS RECOMMENDATION SPEAKS TO THE FACT OF HFSC MANAGEMENT NEEDS TO ALLOW CURRENT STAFF AMPLE TIME TO NOT ONLY PREPARE, BUT ALSO GO TESTIFY TO ANY CASE WORK THAT WAS DONE AT A PREVIOUS LABORATORY. 
          NOW, I PERSONALLY KNOW THAT HFSC DOESN'T HAVE ANY KIND OF CONCERNS ABOUT THIS RECOMMENDATION. 
          WE ARE, IN MY OPINION, EXTREMELY GENEROUS AS WE SHOULD BE WITH STAFF IF THEY HAVE OBLIGATIONS TO PREVIOUS CASE WORK. 
          BUT THIS RECOMMENDATION SPEAKS TO ALL TEXAS LABORATORIES TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LOCAL LAW, LOCAL RULES. 
          BUT IT ESSENTIALLY CREATES THAT DYNAMIC THAT IF YOU HAVE A STAFF MEMBER WHO HAS WORKED AT A PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT, YOU HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO ALLOW THEM TIME TO PREPARE AND ALSO TESTIFY. 
          THAT CAN'T BE THE REASON THAT A STAFF MEMBER ISN'T ABLE TO ADEQUATELY PREPARE FOR A TRIAL. 
          ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS? OKAY, IF I COULD INSERT ONE THING IN THERE. 
          I THINK, I THINK OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, ERICA'S DOING A MARVELOUS JOB OF, OF LAYING THIS OUT. 
          ONE THING JUST TO HIGHLIGHT IN THAT, IF YOU THINK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED WITH THIS PARTICULAR ANALYST, THE, THE IMPACT THAT WE HAVE POTENTIALLY FROM THIS, EVEN THOUGH NOT OUR CASE, NOT OUR COUNTY, NOT OUR WORK, NOT EVEN OUR AGENCY. 
          IF WE END UP HAVING TO REWORK ALL OF WHAT HE DID, THAT'S FIVE, $8 MILLION WORTH OF WORK. 
          SO, AND I, AND I SAY THIS BECAUSE THERE WAS A, THERE WAS A GOOD BIT OF CONVERSATION AT THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION MEETING ON THIS OF THE CONCERNS AROUND USING 
          [01:10:01]
THIS LABORATORY'S RESOURCES FOR ANOTHER LABORATORY'S TESTIMONY. 
          AND I JUST WANT Y'ALL TO UNDERSTAND MY PERSPECTIVE ON THIS IS, IT IS FAR LESS ECONOMIC IMPACT TO US TO ENSURE THAT SOMEBODY DOES A GOOD JOB ON SOMEBODY ELSE'S CASE. 
          BECAUSE WHETHER WE WANT IT OR NOT, IF IT GOES SIDEWAYS, WE SUFFER THE IMPACTS. 
          SO I'M PERFECTLY HAPPY TO SUPPORT WHATEVER'S NECESSARY ON A PREVIOUS CASE. 
          THEN WE DO WHAT WE CAN TO ENSURE THAT IT GOES AS WELL AS IT CAN. 
          'CAUSE THE IMPACTS TO US ARE ENORMOUS IF IT GOES SIDEWAYS. 
          SO I WILL, I WILL UPDATE THE BOARD ABOUT THE ACTIONS THAT WE TAKE, STEPS WE TAKE TOWARDS ACHIEVING COMPLIANCE WITH THESE RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          AGAIN, I'M NOT SURE THAT THIS IS THE FINAL WORDING, BUT CONTENT-WISE, I'M PRETTY SURE THAT THIS IS WHAT WE'LL BE WORKING WITH. 
          AND LIKE I SAID, WE'VE ALREADY BEEN TAKING STEPS TO ADDRESS THESE. 
          UM, BUT WE WILL FINALIZE ALL OF OUR STEPS IN THE NEAR FUTURE, AND I WILL KEEP THE BOARD UPDATED AS TO WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. 
          I'M SORRY, DR. MOORE MEANING AT THE FORMER EMPLOYER? FORMER EMPLOYER, NO. 
          I MEAN, WE, WE DON'T HAVE PURVIEW OVER THE FORMER EMPLOYER, BUT I WOULD ARGUE THAT'S WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT ABOUT THE TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION, THAT THEY HAVE OVERSIGHT OF ALL OF THE LABORATORIES IN TEXAS AND IS WHY, WHY, I MEAN, IN PART WHY WE URGED THEM, OR I SHOULDN'T SAY URGE REQUESTED THEM TO, UM, FORM AN INVESTIGATIVE PANEL AND PERFORM THIS INVESTIGATION. 
          AND I'D SAY WHAT YOU'RE, WHAT YOU'RE KIND, IF, IF I'M UNDERSTANDING YOUR QUESTION, TH THIS IS SOMETHING I'VE TALKED A FAIR BIT WITH LYNN GARCIA WHO'S WITH THE COMMISSION ABOUT, THERE'S A, THERE'S A REAL WEAKNESS IN THE SYSTEM. 
          WE HAD NO IDEA THIS ANALYST WAS INVOLVED IN THIS CASE, AND NO WAY FOR US TO KNOW UNLESS HE TOLD US. 
          THE ONLY REASON WE HAD THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINION WAS BECAUSE I'VE GOT A PRETTY GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH THE STATE AGENCY OF POST-CONVICTION RITZ. 
          THEY, THEY, BEN WOLF, WHO'S THE DIRECTOR THERE, SENT IT TO ME, NOT BECAUSE THERE'S SOME ACTUAL FORMALIZED MECHANISM THAT A LABORATORY'S NOTIFIED OF THIS. 
          WE COULD EASILY BE STILL SITTING HERE IGNORANT TO THIS HAVING HAPPENED AT THIS POINT. 
          'CAUSE THERE'S, THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO ESTABLISHED MECHANISM THAT THAT DECISION WOULD'VE EVER BEEN FORWARDED TO US. 
          THAT'S A REAL WEAKNESS IN THE SYSTEM. 
          IT'S A REAL WEAKNESS IN THE SYSTEM THAT, AND IT'S SOMETHING TO KEEP IN MIND AT ALL POINTS IN TIME. 
          THESE KINDS OF THINGS LURK IN THE HISTORY, AND THERE'S NO WAY TO KNOW THAT IT WAS THERE UNTIL IT BLOWS UP. 
          IT'S, IT'S LIKE, UH, SUPERNOVA AND A FAR OFF STAR. 
          THERE PROBABLY ALREADY IS SOMETHING THAT'S BLOWN UP AND WE JUST HAVEN'T SEEN THE LIGHT FROM IT YET. 
          AND IT MAY TAKE YEARS YET FOR IT TO SHOW UP. 
          AND, SORRY, IF I CAN BUILD ONTO WHAT DR. 
          STAUD SAID. 
          WE HAVE INTERNAL QUALITY CONTROLS THAT REQUIRE ANALYSTS TO TRACK TESTIMONY THAT THEY PROVIDE ON BEHALF OF HSCS CASES. 
          THEY CAN ALSO USE THAT DOCUMENTATION TO RECORD ANY TESTIMONIES THAT THEY'VE PROVIDE FOR CASES FOR OTHER AGENCIES. 
          BUT UP UNTIL THAT, UP UNTIL NOW, THAT WASN'T REQUIRED. 
          WHEREAS NOW, IN ADDITION TO JUST THE COMMISSION'S RECOMMENDATIONS, HFSC HAS OUR OWN CORRECTIVE ACTIONS THAT WE NEED TO TAKE JUST BASED ON OUR LAB MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. 
          AND SO MOVING FORWARD, ANYTIME AN ANALYST GOES TO TESTIFY FOR ANY AGENCY, THEY WILL BE OBLIGATED TO RECORD THAT INFORMATION AND PROVIDED TO US SO THAT WE HAVE EYES ON WHERE OUR STAFF ARE TESTIFYING FOR WHAT CASES AND WHEN AT ALL TIMES MOVING FORWARD. 
          DR. STOUT IS CORRECT. 
          WE DID NOT, WE DID NOT KNOW THAT THIS TESTIMONY EVEN TOOK PLACE. 
          THERE WAS NO DOCUMENTATION OF IT ON OUR END. 
          AND THE ONLY WAY WE WOULD HAVE KNOWN IS IF THE ANALYST HIMSELF HAD, UM, INFORMED US ABOUT IT, WHICH HE DID NOT. 
          SO IN LOOKING AT THE DRAFT, UH, LANGUAGE HERE, IT'S DOESN'T PUT THERE, THERE'S NO OBLIGATION ON THE ANALYST TO SAY I'M GOING TO TESTIFY. 
          RIGHT? CORRECT. 
          NOT, NOT IN THESE. 
          SO THAT'S, SO THAT'S KIND OF A RIGHT. 
          'CAUSE THAT'S KIND OF A LITTLE, I WOULD SAY SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE MISSING. 
          YES. 
          WE HAVE POLICIES THAT SAY, OKAY, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO PREPARE AND THIS IS WHAT CONSTITUTES 
          [01:15:01]
PROPER PREPARATION AND THAT WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU THE TIME TO DO THIS. 
          WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU THE TIME TO GO TO COURT. 
          WE'RE ALSO GONNA DO THIS IF YOU WORK SOMEPLACE ELSE. 
          BUT THERE'S NO OBLIGATION ON THAT ANALYST TO SAY, HEY, I'VE GOTTA GO TESTIFY SOMEPLACE ELSE, WHICH WILL END UP PUTTING US IN THE SAME POSITION THAT WE WERE IN WITH THIS ANALYST IN THE COLOGNE CASE. 
          SO I STILL SEE THAT IT STILL SEEMS LIKE THAT THERE'S A GAP MM-HMM . 
          AND THAT THERE'S NO OBLIGATION ON THAT PERSON TO SAY, I'VE GOTTA GO DO THIS, SO I, AND I, AND I NEED TIME TO PREPARE MM-HMM . 
          AND I NEED TO GO DO THESE THINGS. 
          RIGHT. 
          I FEEL LIKE THERE'S SOMETHING MISSING THERE. 
          RIGHT. 
          THAT'S WHAT WE'LL BE ADDRESSING WITHIN OUR, UM, QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. 
          SURE. 
          I WASN'T HSCT. 
          NO, YOU'RE CORRECT. 
          YOU'RE CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          . 
          YEAH. 
          BUT I, THAT IS PROBABLY SOMETHING MAYBE FOR THE QUALITY MANAGERS TO BRING UP WITH T FSC MM-HMM . 
          BECAUSE I WOULD THINK THERE SHOULD BE A HOOK IN THERE IF NOTHING ELSE. 
          CODE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT MM-HMM . 
          THAT OBLIGES THE ANALYST THEMSELVES AT RISK OF THEIR LICENSE TO INFORM THEIR CURRENT EMPLOYER OF A TESTIMONY OR A CASE ISSUE FROM A PRIOR EMPLOYER SO THAT EVERYBODY'S AWARE. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND AND TO YOUR POINT, I MEAN, YOU, IF YOU HAVE TIME OUT OF OFFICE, THE ASSUMPTION IS THAT YOUR MANAGER IS AWARE THAT YOU'RE OUT OF THE OFFICE. 
          BUT AS TO WHAT CASE IT IS, YOU KNOW, THE ACTUAL MECHANISM OF TRACKING THAT CASE, I FEEL LIKE THAT'S THE PIECE THAT WE'RE MISSING. 
          HOW DO WE, HOW DO WE IDENTIFY THAT CASE? EVEN IF WE KNOW YOU WENT TO TESTIFY, HOW DO WE, IF WE WANTED TO FOLLOW UP ON THAT TRANSCRIPT, HOW DO WE DO THAT? WHAT IS THE, WHAT ARE THE AGENCY NUMBERS THAT WE WOULD NEED IN ORDER TO DO THAT? WELL, I MEAN, WHAT'S, WHAT'S PREVENTING SOMEONE TO TAKE VACATION DAY AND NOT TELL ANYBODY ANYTHING? RIGHT. 
          SAY, I'M JUST GONNA TAKE A DAY, I'M NOT GONNA BE HERE AND THEY'RE OFF TESTIFYING, YOU KNOW, PREPARED OR NOT RIGHT. 
          UM, KIND OF THING. 
          I MEAN, I FEEL LIKE THAT, THAT WITH ALL OF WHAT HAPPENED WITH THIS CASE, THAT IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECES MM-HMM . 
          THAT WASN'T CONSIDERED IN THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ARE GONNA GO OUT TO ALL OF THE LABORATORIES OF SAYING YOU GUYS NEED TO MAKE, IT'S PUTTING ONUS WE'RE THE ONUS ON THE LABS AND LESS ON, AND NONE ON THE ANALYST WHO, WHO HAS A PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY ANYWAY TO PREPARE TO GO TO COURT. 
          I MEAN, THAT'S JUST INHERENT THAT YOU PREPARE. 
          AND WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO SAY YOU NEED TO PREPARE, BUT WE ARE, BUT YET THERE'S NO CONSEQUENCES FOR THE ANALYST OF NOT EVEN TELLING US THAT THEY'RE GOING, WHETHER THEY'RE PREPARED OR NOT. 
          'CAUSE AGAIN, WE CAN BE IN THE SAME POSITION THAT WE ARE IN. 
          AGAIN, I SEE THIS POTENTIALLY MM-HMM . 
          MM-HMM . 
          A POSSIBILITY THAT IT COULD HAPPEN. 
          RIGHT. 
          SO JUST MY THOUGHTS ON THAT SITUATION. 
          NO, I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          AND LIKE I SAID, THE QUALITY MANAGERS HAVE PROVIDED FEEDBACK TO THE COMMISSION AND THIS IS CERTAINLY SOMETHING I'LL FOLLOW UP WITH AND MAKE SURE THAT THIS GETS INSERTED INTO THAT CONVERSATION. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SORRY, JUST NOT AT ALL THE CAN WORMS, BUT I'M LIKE, JUST LOOKING OUT FOR US. 
          IT'S, IT'S A GOOD POINT. 
          YEAH. 
          ERICA AND I HAVE ALSO, YOU KNOW, ONLY HALF JOKING, SAID, DO WE NEED TO PUT IT INTO THE QUALITY MANUAL THAT SOMEBODY WEARS CLOTHING TO COURT? BECAUSE CLEARLY THINGS THAT ARE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES THAT WE'VE ALL ASSUMED, YOU KNOW, SHAME ON US FOR ASSUMING, I GUESS THAT THESE FUNDAMENTAL THINGS THAT YOU WOULD EXPECT SOMEBODY UNDERSTANDS NEED TO HAPPEN CLEARLY DIDN'T IN THIS CASE. 
          RIGHT. 
          WE HAVE LANGUAGE THAT SPEAKS TO TESTIMONY NEEDING TO BE FULL AND ACCURATE, AND ONE WOULD ASSUME THAT IN ORDER TO PROVIDE TESTIMONY THAT IS FULL AND ACCURATE, ONE WOULD NEED TO BE FAMILIAR WITH THE WORK THAT ONE DID. 
          BUT AGAIN, MAKING THE IMPLICIT EXPLICIT MOVING FORWARD. 
          ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS DISCLOSURE? OKAY. 
          UM, I WANTED TO UPDATE, UPDATE IF I, IF I COULD JUST ONE THAT PART OF THE REASON FOR COVERING THIS SO MUCH IS WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF YOU UNDERSTAND THE, THE BROAD RANGING IMPLICATIONS OF THIS. 
          THIS IS GOING TO BE WITH US FOR QUITE A WHILE. 
          THE IMPLICATIONS EVEN SIMPLY FOR BIOLOGY CASEWORK, BUT THIS ALSO IS, IT IS GOING TO TAKE OUR ANALYSTS TIME TO COME TO GRIPS WITH THIS. 
          IT IS CLEARLY RATTLED THEM BECAUSE IT HAS BEEN A REALLY CLEAR CIRCUMSTANCE OF JUST THE IMPLICATIONS FOR THEM PERSONALLY. 
          AND SO TRYING TO MAKE IT CLEAR TO EVERYBODY, AND THIS IS PART OF WHAT I'M ALSO DISCUSSING WITH THE ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGES, AND YOU PROBABLY READ, YOU KNOW, MY WEEKLY RANTS ABOUT STUFF, BUT WITH ALSO OUR OTHER STAKEHOLDERS TO GET THEM TO UNDERSTAND THE CONDITIONS THAT OUR ANALYSTS HAVE TO TESTIFY IN, HAVE A VERY DIRECT, VERY REAL IMPLICATION 
          [01:20:01]
FOR THEIR LICENSE AND THEIR CAREER. 
          THESE THINGS CAN BE VERY MUCH CAREER ENDING FOR OUR ANALYSTS IF THEY ARE PUT IN A PINCH THAT THEY CAN'T PREPARE PROPERLY. 
          SO, WELL, THIS HELPS US. 
          YES. 
          I MEAN, THIS HELPS US WITH THE, I DON'T WANNA SAY THE ARGUMENT WITH THE DISCUSSIONS MM-HMM . 
          ABOUT HOW WE NEED MORE TIMELY NOTIFICATION AND NOT, YOU GET 30 MINUTES OR AN HOUR OR TWO HOURS, HEY, I NEED YOU TO, BUT YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS GONNA BE THAT IN, THERE'S AN EMERGENCY OR SOMETHING. 
          BUT I DON'T KNOW, IT'S, IT'S, THIS IS INNATE AND YOU, AND AS A PROFESSIONAL, YOU SHOULD PREPARE, YOU SHOULD BE, YOUR TESTIMONY SHOULD BE TRUTHFUL TO THE BEST OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITY MM-HMM . 
          BASED ON THE EVIDENCE. 
          AND, AND I, I'M SORRY WE HAVE TO SAY THAT AND BE EXPLICIT WITH THAT BECAUSE OF ONE EVENT, BUT I I, YOU KNOW, JUST, JUST WHAT YOU'RE SAYING WITH, YOU KNOW, IT, IT'S BETTER FOR US YES. 
          THAT IT'S, THAT IT'S OUT THERE AND IT'S GONNA HELP US WITH OUR ARGUMENTS OR OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH THE JUDGES IN THE DA'S OFFICE. 
          AND SO WE CAN BETTER COME TOGETHER AND WORK BETTER AS A TEAM ON THESE THINGS AND COMMUNICATE BETTER. 
          BUT I HATE THAT WE HAVE TO ACTUALLY HAVE TO HAVE THIS EXPLICITLY WRITTEN DOWN. 
          YEP. 
          IT'S FRUSTRATING. 
          YES. 
          AND, AND, AND IT WORKS OUT BETTER FOR THE ANALYST AS WELL. 
          IT HELPS PROTECT THEM. 
          OH. 
          HOWEVER, THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO STAND UP AND SAY, I WAS NOT GIVEN ENOUGH TIME. 
          YOU KNOW, I WAS NOT, YOU KNOW, IF I, IF I WAS JUST TEST, IF I WAS JUST CALLED TO TESTIFY AND I ONLY HAD ONE HOUR NOTICE, YOU CAN'T PREPARE ADEQUATELY IN ONE HOUR AND GET THERE AND BE ON THE STAND. 
          BUT THEY HAVE TO BE ABLE TO STAND UP AND BE COMFORTABLE SAYING, I DID NOT RECEIVE, I DID NOT HAVE ADEQUATE TIME TO PREPARE AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS SAID OUT LOUD ON THE RECORD. 
          ON THE RECORD. 
          UM, OH AND AN IMPLICATION OF THIS THAT I WILL CONTINUE TO REITERATE WITH ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS, INCLUDING THE CITY, BECAUSE THERE IS A BUDGET IMPLICATION FOR THIS OF THAT TIME THAT'S NECESSARY. 
          BUT THIS IS ALSO WHEN PEOPLE ASK ME, WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG TO GET AN ANALYST TO A POINT WHERE THEY CAN BE SIGNED UP FOR CASEWORK? THIS IS WHY, YES, TESTIFYING ABOUT CASES IS A RARE THING. 
          WE TESTIFY ON MAYBE 3% OF THE CASES THAT WE WORK. 
          BUT GETTING AN ANALYST TO THE POINT WHERE THEY HAVE THE CONFIDENCE, THE ASSURANCE, THE KNOWLEDGE TO BE ABLE TO, IN THAT VERY STRESSFUL, VERY HOSTILE CIRCUMSTANCE, TO BE ABLE TO STAND UP TO AN ATTORNEY AND THE COURT AND TELL THE COURT, I'M SORRY, YOUR HONOR, I WAS NOT PROVIDED ENOUGH TIME TO DO THIS. 
          I CANNOT TESTIFY TO THAT. 
          THAT IS A HIGH LEVEL ACTIVITY AND TAKES YEARS TO BE AT A POINT TO DO THAT. 
          IT'S ONE THING FOR ME TO WALK IN THERE AND DO THAT. 
          IT'S A WHOLE NOTHER THING FOR AN ANALYST WHO'S GOT TWO TO THREE YEARS UNDER THEIR BELT. 
          MAYBE IT'S THEIR FIRST CASE THAT THEY'RE TESTIFYING IN. 
          THAT IS A TERRIFYING PROSPECT TO THEM. 
          THE YEARS OF TRAINING THAT WE DO IS TRYING TO GET THEM IN A PLACE THAT THEY CAN SURVIVE THAT. 
          SO THAT, I GUESS THAT MEANS WE NEED TO ALSO GET OUR TRAINING IN PREPARATION SO THAT THEY CAN DO THAT FASTER. 
          I DON'T WANNA, YOU KNOW. 
          YEAH. 
          SO THEY, THEY CAN HAVE THAT CONFIDENCE TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT, BUT IT, IT STILL TAKES YEARS TO GET SOMEBODY TO THAT POINT. 
          AND THIS IS PART OF TRYING TO GET THOSE THAT PROVIDE THE FUNDING. 
          THIS, THIS IS A FUNDAMENTAL REALITY OF WHAT IT MEANS TO GET AN ANALYST TO A FUNCTIONAL PLACE WHERE THEY CAN SIGN OFF CASEWORK. 
          SO ALONG THOSE SAME LINES, THE QUALITY DIVISION PROVIDED TESTIMONY TRAINING TO OUR STAFF. 
          UM, THE TRAINING WAS HELD. 
          WE HAD TWO DIFFERENT SESSIONS. 
          ONE WAS HELD ON OCTOBER 20TH AND THE OTHER WAS HELD ON OCTOBER 27TH. 
          AND IT WAS A FIVE HOUR TRAINING SESSION, UH, THAT WAS REQUIRED FOR ALL TECHNICAL STAFF. 
          AND PART OF THAT TRAINING COVERED, UH, BRADY VERSUS MARILYN, ALSO THE MICHAEL MORTON ACT. 
          ALSO ADEQUATE AND PROPER TESTIMONY, PREPARATION, DISCOVERY REQUESTS, INCLUDING HOW STAFF CAN TELL IF A DISCOVERY REQUEST HAS BEEN MADE ON A CASE THAT THEY'RE HEADING TO COURT ON, AND HOW TO CONFIRM THAT THE CASE RECORD HAS BEEN PROVIDED ON THAT CASE. 
          AND THEN ALSO COURTROOM ETIQUETTE. 
          AND WHILE THIS DOVETAILS OFF OF OUR COLOGNE REPORT, CLEARLY, IT ALSO DEMONSTRATES, I KNOW DR. 
          SAT WAS TALKING BEFORE ABOUT CONTINUING EDUCATION FOR STAFF. 
          AND SO THE QUALITY DIVISION, ONE OF OUR SECTION'S GOALS IS TO PROVIDE TRAINING TO 
          [01:25:01]
ALL STAFF TO BE ABLE TO ENSURE THAT STAFF HAS TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES IN-HOUSE. 
          SOME OF THEM ARE REQUIRED SO THEY DON'T HAVE A CHOICE BUT TO, TO BE ABLE TO HELP FULFILL THAT CE REQUIREMENT, BUT ALSO ENSURING THAT THAT TRAINING IS EFFECTIVE AND IT SPEAKS DIRECTLY TO THE WORK THAT THEY DO AT THE LABORATORY. 
          SO THE QUALITY DIVISION ALSO PROVIDED VERY RECENTLY ETHICS TRAINING. 
          IT WAS HELD ON NOVEMBER 3RD AND IT INCLUDED THREE PANELISTS AND A Q AND A SESSION. 
          SO WE HAD, WE INVITED GAVIN ELLIS FROM THE HARRIS COUNTY CONVICTION INTEGRITY UNIT, ALSO SAFE CHASM FROM THE HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER'S OFFICE. 
          ANN BENJAMIN WOLF FROM THE OFFICE OF FORENSIC AND CAPITAL RITZ. 
          AGAIN, DR. STOUT REFERENCED EARLIER THE OFFICE OF FORENSIC AND CAPITAL. 
          RITZ WAS THE OFFICE THAT, UM, REACHED OUT TO US SO THAT WE BECAME AWARE OF THE ISSUE WITH THE COLOGNE CASE. 
          AND SO THEY SPOKE WITH STAFF, UM, ALL TOLD IT WAS TWO HOURS. 
          EACH ONE GAVE A PRESENTATION THAT LASTED ABOUT 30 MINUTES THAT SPOKE TO THEIR OFFICE'S FUNCTION WITHIN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM AND HOW ETHICS PLAYED A ROLE IN THEIR OFFICES. 
          ETHICS WAS PARAMOUNT TO THEIR OFFICE'S ROLE WITHIN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. 
          UM, AND THEN THERE WAS A HALF HOUR SECTION AFTERWARDS FOR STAFF TO ASK, ASK QUESTIONS. 
          AND WHY WE SPECIFICALLY ASKED THESE THREE PANELISTS TO COME WAS THAT, AGAIN, BECAUSE OF THE COLON REPORT, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE SAW IS THAT OUR STAFF IS NOT REALLY FAMILIAR WITH THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM AS A WHOLE. 
          THEY GET CALLED TO COURT, THEY TESTIFY AT TRIAL, BUT THEN THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THAT POINT IS FAIRLY LIMITED. 
          MY MINE INCLUDED. 
          WHAT WE SAW IN THE CLONE REPORT WAS THAT THE ANALYST WAS INVOLVED WITH AN AFFIDAVIT. 
          THE MAJORITY OF OUR STAFF HAS NEVER PARTICIPATED IN AN AFFIDAVIT PROCESS. 
          THERE WAS ALSO A DEPOSITION THAT WAS GIVEN. 
          AGAIN, THE MAJORITY OF OUR STAFF HAS NEVER BEEN SUBJECTED TO A DEPOSITION. 
          THEY'RE NOT TYPICALLY INVOLVED IN ANY POST-CONVICTION PROCEEDINGS. 
          AND SO WE FELT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO HAVE THESE THREE PANELISTS COME AND PRESENT ABOUT WHAT THEIR OFFICES DO AND GIVE OUR STAFF AN OVERALL PERSPECTIVE OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM BEYOND JUST TRIAL TESTIMONY SO THAT THEY COULD BE EDUCATED ABOUT THAT AR ABOUT THOSE AREAS. 
          AND FURTHER WITH TESTIMONY, JUST I WANTED TO UPDATE THE BOARD WITH OUR METRICS. 
          WE HAVE HAD 67 ANALYSTS TESTIFY SO FAR THIS YEAR. 
          62 OF THEM HAVE ALREADY BEEN MONITORED, LEAVING A REMAINING FIVE THAT HAVEN'T BEEN MONITORED YET. 
          BUT WE HAVE REQUESTED TRANSCRIPTS OF THOSE FIVE ANALYSTS SO THAT WE CAN REVIEW THOSE IN LIEU OF OUR IN-PERSON MONITORING. 
          AND THEN FOR OUR TRANSCRIPT REVIEW PROJECT, WE RECENTLY RECEIVED 12 TRANSCRIPTS FROM THE HARRIS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE IN SEPTEMBER. 
          AND THOSE 12 TRANSCRIPTS INCLUDED 40 TESTIMONIES FROM HFSC STAFF. 
          SO WE HAD MULTIPLE STAFF MEMBERS TESTIFYING WITHIN ONE CASE. 
          SO WE NOW HAVE A STOCKPILE OF TRANSCRIPTS THAT WE CAN USE TO REVIEW WITHIN OUR TRANSCRIPT REVIEW PROJECT. 
          SO OUR FIRST ROUND HAS 10 STR 10 TRANSCRIPTS GOING OUT FOR REVIEW. 
          AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO REQUEST AND TO REVIEW, YOU KNOW, THROUGH THIS YEAR, THE END OF THIS YEAR, AND THEN OF COURSE PICK UP WHERE WE LEFT OFF IN THE BEGINNING OF NEXT YEAR. 
          ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS THAT I CAN ANSWER AROUND TESTIMONY DATA? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ALRIGHT, THIS TAKES US BACK TO, I THINK, EXECUTIVE SESSION. 
          IT DOES. 
          OKAY. 
          AGENDA ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, WE'RE GONNA CIRCLE BACK AROUND TO THAT, WHICH IS EXECUTIVE SESSION IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 5 5 1 0.07, ONE OF THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE 5 5 1 0.074 A ONE PERSONNEL MATTERS TO DISCUSS AND FINALIZE DR. 
          PETER STOUT'S ANNUAL EVALUATION. 
          AT THIS TIME, THE HFSC BOARD OF DIRECTORS WILL GO INTO A CLOSED MEETING, ALSO KNOWN AS AN EXECUTIVE SESSION, AND AS PERMITTED BY THE TEXAS OPEN MEETING ACT. 
          THE CLOSED MEETING WILL NOT BE ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC, AND WE WILL ASK OUR STAFF TO STEP OUTSIDE UNTIL THE, UH, UNTIL THE TIME BEING EXCEPT FOR DR. STOUT. 
          I DO NOT ANTICIPATE THE CLOSED MEETING RUNNING TOO LONG, BUT PLEASE BE AWARE THAT THE BOARD DOES NOT HAVE A SET TIME TO RECONVENE THE, UH, THE OPEN MEETING TODAY. 
          WE WILL RETURN WHEN OUR BUSINESS IS CONCLUDED. 
          THE TIME IS NOW 10 30. 
          PLEASE STOP THE RECORDING AT THIS TIME AND WE WILL GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION NOW. 
          [01:32:21]
I DIDN'T DO IT WELL ENOUGH. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          OH, APPARENTLY WE'RE LIVE NOW. 
          OKAY. 
          THE TIME IS NOW 1138 AND THE HFSC BOARD OF DIRECTORS IS RECONVENING THIS OPEN MEETING FOR THE RECORD. 
          WE STILL HAVE A QUORUM. 
          UM, AT THIS TIME, THE BOARD WILL CONSIDER ANY DISCUSSION OR ACTION RELATED TO THE EXECUTIVE SESSION. 
          I AM OPENING THE FLOOR FOR ANY MOTIONS OR DISCUSSIONS FROM THE BOARD RELATED TO EXECUTIVE SESSION. 
          DO I HAVE A MOTION REGARDING DR. 
          STOUT'S ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION? NO. 
          OKAY. 
          DIRECTOR COHEN MOOD. 
          WE HAVE HIS EVALUATION. 
          UM, OKAY. 
          AND THEN WE GOTTA DO MOTION. 
          WE NEED A MOTION TO, FOR HIS, UM, PERCENT INCREASE IN HIS SALARY, HIS SALARY INCREASE, UM, I MOVE THE DR. STOUT BE GIVEN A 2.5% INCREASE. 
          HEY, DO WE HAVE A SECOND? WE HAVE A DUAL SECOND HERE. 
          EXCELLENT. 
          OKAY, GOOD. 
          IT'S REALLY SECONDED. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          DO WE HAVE ANY DISCUSSION? UM, I KNOW DR. STOUT, DURING THE, OUR DISCUSSION AFTER AN EXECUTIVE SESSION, THERE WERE WONDERFUL THINGS AND LOTS OF, UH, EVERY ONE OF THE BOARD MEMBERS WANTED TO DEFINITELY WANT TO IMPART THAT YOU HAVE BEEN AN EXCELLENT REPRESENTATIVE AND YOU CONTINUE TO BE A GREAT REPRESENTATIVE OF HSC TO THE CITY, TO THE STATE AND BEYOND, NATIONALLY AND EVEN GLOBALLY REGARDING FORENSIC SCIENCE AND WHAT THE HOUSTON FORENSIC SCIENCE CENTER IS DOING AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH. 
          AND THOSE ACCOMPLISHMENTS HAVE BEEN DIRECTLY RELATED TO YOU AND YOUR VISION. 
          UM, YOU HAVE A QUITE A STRATEGIC VISION AND, UM, AND YOU HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN, HAVE BEEN VERY INSPIRATIONAL TO NOT ONLY THE COMPANY, BUT TO THE BOARD, TO THE COMMUNITY AND OTHER FORENSIC SCIENCE, UH, LABS AND PERSONNEL THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD. 
          SO WE COMMEND YOU HIGHLY ON THAT. 
          AND THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU HAVE DONE AND THAT YOU WILL CONTINUE TO DO, UM, FOR US AND, AND, AND TO KEEP HFSC MOVING FORWARD. 
          UM, YOU UNDERSTAND THE OTHER LABS, YOU, YOU, YOU, YOU HAVE YOUR FINGER ON THE PULSE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN FORENSIC SCIENCE, AND YOU CAN RELATE THAT AND ANTICIPATE, UM, POTENTIAL CHALLENGES AND THINGS THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE ENCOUNTERING BASED UPON WHAT, WHAT THE TRENDS ARE IN FORENSIC SCIENCE. 
          UM, THAT FORWARD THINKING IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY WHEN 
          [01:35:01]
WE GET TO OUR UPCOMING LEGISLATIVE SESSION AS WELL AS THE CHANGES AND SEEING THE CHANGES IN FORENSIC SCIENCE AND BEING A STEP AHEAD OF LOOKING AT THINGS LIKE NEW TECHNOLOGY AND, AND TRYING IT OUT TO MAKE SURE IS IT GOING TO BE A GOOD FIT FOR US? AND WHEN AND IF IT IS, THEN YOU BRING THAT INFORMATION BACK AND IT'S INTEGRATED IN SUCH A WAY THAT IT IS USEFUL AND HELPFUL INTO THE SCIENTIFIC PROCESS. 
          SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU ARE DOING FOR US. 
          OH, THANK YOU. 
          I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          DID I CAPTURE THAT ? OKAY. 
          APPRECIATE THAT. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE, I'D LIKE TO OPEN THE FLORA. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS, UM, WHILE WE ARE IN THE DISCUSSION PHASE BEFORE WE VOTE? NO, STACEY SAID IT THE LONG WAY, BUT WE LIKE YOU AND YOU'RE FANTASTIC. 
          SO  WELL, THANK YOU. 
          I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY, THEN. 
          UM, NOW WE HAVE NO OTHER COMMENTS, THEN WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO THE VOTING OF THE TWO PER. 
          CAN I ASK ONE QUICK QUESTION? YES, MA'AM. 
          WHEN YOU ASKED FOR THE FOR APPROVAL SECOND PREVIOUS MOTION, HAVE A VOTE? NO, WE WERE, WE JUST NEEDED TO VOTE ON THE INCREASE IN THE SALARY. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN WE'RE GONNA COME TO THE OBJECTIVES NEXT. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          WE'RE, WE'RE GOOD? YEAH, YEAH. 
          NO, NO, WE'RE GOOD. 
          WE'RE GOOD. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF A TWO, 2.5% INCREASE IN DR. 
          STOUT'S SALARY EFFECTIVE ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE NA, NEXT HFSC PAY PERIOD. 
          PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY. 
          MOTION CARRIES . 
          OKAY. 
          UH, THE NEXT THING THAT WE DISCUSSED, UM, IN THE EXECUTIVE SESSION HAD TO DO WITH OUR, UH, PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES, DR. STOUT AND THOSE, AND THAT'S BASED ON DISCUSSIONS THAT WE HAD, UH, RECENTLY ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU WANTED TO ACCOMPLISH OVER THE NEXT YEAR. 
          AND SO, DO WE HAVE A MOTION, UM, RELATED TO DR. 
          STOUT'S PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES FOR THE NEXT YEAR? YES. 
          WE HAVE A MOTION, UH, ON THE 2022 TO 2023 PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES FOR DR. STOUT. 
          UH, THAT INCLUDES, UM, LEADING A MINIMUM OF, OF THREE OUTREACH EDUCATION SESSIONS IN TEXAS, UH, RELATED TO TOXICOLOGY ISSUES. 
          UH, THE SECOND ONE, SECOND, UH, PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE WOULD TO BEGIN THE SUCCESSION PLANNING PROCESS THIS YEAR FOR THE EXECUTIVE TEAM AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER POSITION. 
          AND THEN THE LAST PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE, UH, THAT WE CONSIDERED WAS OVER THE NEXT YEAR COLLABORATE WITH THE HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT LEADERS TO ADDRESS PROPERTY SLASH EVIDENCE MANAGEMENT, UH, FROM CONCEPTION TO CONCLUSION. 
          AND THAT ENDS THE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES. 
          DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY DISCUSSION? OKAY. 
          ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY, GREAT. 
          THE MOTION CARRIES. 
          SO WE WILL BE ADDING THOSE THREE OBJECTIVES OKAY. 
          INTO, IN ADDITION TO THE, UM, COMPANY GOALS THAT WE ACCEPTED IN A PREVIOUS MEETING. 
          OKAY? OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY. 
          WELL THAT BRINGS US TO THE END OF OUR MEETING. 
          DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? ALRIGHT, IN A SECOND. 
          SECOND. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? I MIGHT, I THINK IT'S A GIVEN. 
          UM, . 
          ALL RIGHTY. 
          UH, SO THE MEETING IS ADJOURNED AT 11:44 AM THANK YOU. 
          PLEASE ENJOY THE HOLIDAYS AND LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING EVERYONE IN JANUARY. 
          HAPPY. 
          THAT'S RIGHT. 
          HAPPY. 
          HAPPY NEW YEAR. 
          HAPPY THANKSGIVING. 
          HAPPY HOLIDAYS. 
          HAPPY ALL THE OTHER, ALL OF THEM.
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.