[Houston Forensic Science Center: Board of Directors Meeting on January 10, 2025.]
[00:00:19]
EVERYBODY GOT THEIR COFFEE? WARMING UP.UM, I'D LIKE TO BEGIN BY WELCOMING EVERYONE TO THE, UH, FIRST MEETING OF THE NEW YEAR AND TO START BY CALLING THE, UH, ROLE.
UM, MADAM SECRETARY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLE? YEAH, MADAM CHAIR.
AND THAT CONCLUDES THE ROLL CALL.
WE HAVE A QUORUM AND WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO, WE'RE GONNA GO OUT OF ORDER RATHER THAN AGENDA ITEM THREE.
STOUTS REPORT BECAUSE HE HAS TO BE AT A PRESS CONFERENCE AT 10 O'CLOCK AND HE'S BEING PICKED UP HERE AND HE CAN WORK IT OUT.
BUT WE'RE GONNA DO HIS PRESENTATION FIRST.
ANYBODY HAVE ANY OBJECTIONS TO THAT? DR.
STOUTS? YOU HAVE AN OBJECTION TO GOING DOWN
AND OF COURSE, NO ONE'S GONNA HAVE AN OBJECTION BECAUSE IF I HAVE TO BE DONE HERE BY NINE 30, THAT MEANS Y'ALL ARE DONE BY 10 INSTEAD OF NOON IF I WERE HERE.
SO, UM, YEAH, I APPRECIATE IT.
UH, SO I'M GONNA COME AND DAVID AND AMY WILL TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF WHAT I HAD PLANNED FOR THIS AND IF WE'VE GOT QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSIONS, DAVID AND AMY CAN, CAN HELP NAVIGATE THAT.
SO I APOLOGIZE FOR HAVING TO SCOOT OUTTA HERE EARLY.
UH, BUT SO, UH, OUT OF THIS, I'LL LET AMY COVER THOSE PARTS AND I WILL START HERE, UM, IN PREPARATION FOR OUR BUDGET NEXT MEETING IN MARCH, WHERE WE DISCUSSED AND CONSIDER OUR BUDGET TO THEN FORWARD ONTO CITY HALL.
I FIGURED IT WOULD BE GOOD TO JUST GIVE YOU SOME BACKGROUND OF THE ECONOMICS OF WHAT GOES ON IN CRIME LABORATORIES, BOTH NATIONALLY AND HOW THAT PERTAINS TO US.
SO YOU HAVE SOME IDEA OF HOW WE'RE THINKING ABOUT BUDGET AS WE PUT THIS TOGETHER AND THE REALITIES FOR LABS AND KIND OF WHERE WE SIT RELATIVE TO THE REST OF THE WORLD.
AND I'VE, THIS QUESTION GETS ASKED OF ME ALL THE TIME, ALL KINDS OF VENUES, ALL KINDS OF GROUPS.
AND LARGELY THE QUESTION IS, HOW MUCH WOULD IT COST YOU TO ELIMINATE YOUR BACKLOG? AND KEEP IN MIND, BACKLOG TYPICALLY REFERS TO STUFF THAT IS OLDER THAN 30 DAYS.
AND THERE IS A WHOLE LOT OF HISTORY IN THAT 30 DAY THING.
MOST OF IT HAS TO DO WITH LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL AND NOT ACTUALLY OPERATIONAL NEEDS.
SO THAT'S WHY I PUT BACKLOG IN QUOTES.
UM, THE OTHER WAY I GET THIS QUESTION IS HOW MUCH SHOULD THIS WORK COST TO DO? AND THEN THAT'S USUALLY FOLLOWED UP WITH, HOW DO I KNOW YOU'RE NOT JUST FEEDING ME A LINE AND GIVING ME A BIG NUMBER 'CAUSE YOU THINK YOU NEED MORE MONEY? UM, OR HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THIS IS REALLY AN ESTIMATE OF IT? NOW, I ALSO TRY TO EMPHASIZE WITH ANYBODY TALKING ABOUT THE ECONOMICS OF STUFF THAT LABS ARE A PART OF THE WIDER SYSTEM.
AND NOTORIOUS CHALLENGES FOR LABORATORIES IS WE HAVE MINIMAL OR NO CONTROL OVER THE WORK THAT GETS REQUESTED OF US.
AND THAT, I MEAN, FUNDAMENTALLY ROLLS BACK TO, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO CONTROL HOW MUCH CRIME OCCURS.
BUT REALLY WE DO WORK AS A RESPONSE TO REQUESTS FROM LAW ENFORCEMENT, PROSECUTION, THE SYSTEM AT LARGE.
WE ALSO CAN'T CONTROL THE DEMAND FOR THE PRIORITIZATION OF THAT WORK.
HOW FAST SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE SHOULD BE DONE, WHAT CASE GOES FIRST, WHAT CASE GOES SECOND.
WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS A LOT OVER THE YEARS, BUT FUNDAMENTALLY, WE DON'T CONTROL HOW MUCH WORK COMES IN AND HOW DEMANDING THAT WORK IS.
SO LABS ARE ALWAYS AT THE MERCY OF THE CHOICES AND CONDITIONS OF THE WIDER SYSTEM.
AND THOSE HAVE AN IMMENSE IMPACT ON HOW WE HAVE TO TRY AND DESIGN AN ENGINEER.
NOW, SOMEHOW I TRY TO GET PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND THE REALITIES FOR LABORATORIES THAT WE'RE TRYING TO MANAGE IS I, I POINT BACK TO THIS ONE.
THIS HAS BECOME KIND OF AN ICONIC PICTURE AROUND, UM, WRONGFUL CONVICTION AND EXONERATIONS.
PROBABLY YOU'LL RECOGNIZE SOME OF THE PEOPLE IN THE PICTURES THERE.
ON THE ONE SIDE IS ANISE PARKER, WHO WAS, UH, MAYOR AT THE TIME THAT HFSC WAS, UM, CREATED.
AND THAT IS AT AN EVENT WHERE SHE WAS GIVEN AN OFFICIAL APOLOGY TO GEORGE RODRIGUEZ WHO SERVED, UH, 17 YEARS FOR A SEXUAL ASSAULT THAT HE DIDN'T COMMIT.
UM, AND HE WAS EXONERATED IN 2005, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY,
[00:05:01]
IN 2009, HE SUED THE CITY OF HOUSTON FOR A CIVIL LIBERT IN INFRINGEMENT OF HIS CIVIL LIBERTIES.AND HE PREVAILED, WHICH IS A VERY UNUSUAL THING.
BUT IN THAT HE DEMONSTRATED DELIBERATE INDIFFERENCE ON THE PART OF THE CITY IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THE CRIME LABORATORY.
AND THAT WAS FUNDAMENTALLY THE NEXUS OF HOW HIS WRONGFUL CONVICTION HAPPENED.
THE ORIGINAL SETTLEMENT IN THAT WAS $9 MILLION.
SO I USED THAT AS A VERY SIMPLISTIC WAY OF TRYING TO GET PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND THE RISK ASSOCIATED WITH CRIME LABORATORIES.
SO EVERYBODY ROLLS THEIR EYES AT THIS.
I SAY IT SO OFTEN, THE RIGHT ANSWER TOO LATE IS DEVASTATING, JUST LIKE THE WRONG ANSWER ON TIME IS.
SO THIS IS ALL ABOUT THE RIGHT ANSWER AT THE RIGHT TIME.
AGAIN, VERY SIMPLISTICALLY THINKING ABOUT THE RISK OF LABORATORIES.
THERE IS A VERY REAL RISK IF WE GET IT WRONG, WRONGFUL CONVICTION.
THERE'S ALL KINDS OF OTHER WAYS THAT WE ARE DEVASTATING IF WE GET IT WRONG.
BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT THAT ONE LAB MISTAKE, GEORGE RODRIGUEZ, $9 MILLION IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, WE'VE DONE 25,000 REQUESTS.
THAT MEANS KIND OF TYPICALLY ON ANY GIVEN YEAR STRAIGHT LINE RISK ASSESSMENT FROM THAT IS WE REPRESENT ABOUT $225 BILLION OF RISK TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON EVERY YEAR.
KIND OF A BIG NUMBER IF WE ARE LATE GETTING A RESULT OUT.
BEST WAY I'VE KIND OF LOOKED AT THIS TO TRY AND GET PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND IT IS, AND I CITE THAT STUDY AND I, I PUT REFERENCES TO ALL THE, THE STUDIES THAT I'M CITING IN THIS.
IF YOU WANT TO GO LOOK AT STUFF THAT ARE REALLY NERDY AND LIKE ME READ THIS STUFF IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT.
UM, BUT THAT STUDY IS A 2010 STUDY.
SO IT'S $2,010, BUT IT TRIES TO ESTIMATE THE COSTS OF VARIOUS CRIMES TO THE LOCAL COMMUNITY.
SO THE COST OF INVESTIGATION AND INCARCERATION AND LOST WAGES AND DAMAGES AND ALL THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.
THEY PEG A HOMICIDE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 5 MILLION AND 14 MILLION, A SEXUAL ASSAULT AT A HALF A MILLION AND A BURGLARY AT ABOUT 40 K.
UM, I CAN GUARANTEE YOU IF YOU ARE THE VICTIM OF ANY OF THOSE CRIMES, YOU THINK THEY'RE WORTH A WHOLE LOT MORE, BUT THAT'S THEIR ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT OF IT.
SO IF YOU USE THOSE NUMBERS, THAT MEANS IF WE GET A RESULT OUT THAT HEADS OFF FOUR HOMICIDES OUT OF THE ROUGHLY 400 THAT WE CATCH A YEAR, THAT IS MORE THAN OUR ANNUAL BUDGET.
SAME THING ABOUT 70 SEXUAL ASSAULTS.
AND PRETTY MUCH EVERY WEEK WE'RE HUSTLING SOMETHING UP BECAUSE IT'S PART OF AN ARREST WARRANT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT ON A SEXUAL ASSAULT THAT'S MORE THAN OUR ENTIRE BUDGET IN A YEAR.
SO US GETTING RESULTS OUT QUICKLY, ANY LABORATORY GETTING LABS OUT IN A TIMELY FASHION HAS A VERY REAL IMPACT ON COSTS TO THE SOCIETY.
I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT THINKS ABOUT THESE THIS WAY.
MAX HOUCK JUST RECENTLY PUBLISHED THIS ARTICLE, UM, AND I PUT THE LINK TO IT IN THERE FOR YOU, UM, JUST A COUPLE, FEW WEEKS AGO.
AND HE'S ACTUALLY TALKING ABOUT THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH AN INVESTIGATION IN THE UK INTO A TOXIC COMMERCIAL TOXICOLOGY LABORATORY THAT WAS FABRICATING RESULTS IN THE UK.
UM, AND IT'S BEEN A BIG INVESTIGATION, MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF POUNDS THAT THEY'VE SPENT ON THIS.
AND BASICALLY THEY'VE JUST GIVEN UP ON IT BECAUSE IT HAS BECOME SO EXPENSIVE TO TRY AND REMEDIATE.
SO THIS ISN'T JUST A HOUSTON ISSUE, IT'S NOT JUST A US ISSUE.
THIS IS A WORLDWIDE ISSUE AROUND LABORATORIES OF UNDERFUNDING AND THE COST.
BUT IN THERE, UH, HE CITES A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT OTHERS HAVE ESTIMATED THE COST OF A WRONGFUL CONVICTION AT 6.1 MILLION, THAT'S KINDA THE AVERAGE COST.
SO OKAY, FINE, USE THAT NUMBER.
WE'RE ONLY $152 BILLION A YEAR WORTH OF RISK.
STILL AN INSANELY LARGE NUMBER.
BUT IT ALSO POINTS THAT IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS HERE IN THE US WE HAVE SPENT MORE THAN $4 BILLION SIMPLY ON THE COMPENSATION FOR WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS.
LABS POSE AN IMMENSE RISK TO THE SYSTEM.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO MANAGE.
WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TRYING TO ACTUALLY FUND MANAGING THIS? OKAY, SO THERE ARE TWO PRIMARY SOURCES OF DATA THAT HAVE, I MEAN THESE ARE IT FOR ANY KIND OF ECONOMICS ABOUT CRIME LABORATORIES IN THE US.
ONE IS THE CENSUS OF PUBLICLY FUNDED CRIME LABORATORIES.
THIS IS A STUDY THAT IS RUN BY THE BUREAU OF JUSTICE STATISTICS ONCE EVERY FIVE YEARS, WHICH DRIVES ME NUTS BECAUSE TO ME THAT SCREAMS JUST HOW MUCH PRIORITY THE FEDS PUT ON.
THIS IS WE'LL ONLY DO THIS EVERY FIVE YEARS.
SO THE 2020 NUMBERS ARE THE CURRENT NUMBERS.
UM, OUT OF THAT STUDY, THERE ARE, THERE WERE 326 LABORATORIES THAT RESPONDED TO IT.
THEY'RE GENERALLY VIEWED AS ABOUT 400 PUBLICLY FUNDED CRIME LABORATORIES IN THE US.
UM, ABOUT 3.3 MILLION REQUESTS IN 2020 THAT FLOWED THROUGH THOSE 326 LABS.
AND INTERESTINGLY, I FIND LOTS OF PLACES, TEXAS IS ALMOST PRECISELY 10% OF THE US UM, WHERE I'VE CAN TRACK DOWN ABOUT 300 ODD THOUSAND REQUESTS
[00:10:01]
THAT FLOW THROUGH THE LABORATORIES IN TEXAS.BUT IN THIS STUDY THERE'S SOME USEFUL THINGS.
ONE, THEY GIVE THE TOTAL WORK REQUESTED ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
THEY GIVE THE TOTAL BUDGETS OF ALL THE PUBLIC LABORATORIES AND THEY GIVE SOME ESTIMATES OF THE TOTAL BACKLOGS OVER 30 DAYS IN ABSOLUTE NUMBERS.
AND IT'S THE ONLY PLACE I THAT YOU CAN FIND THESE NUMBERS.
SO OUTTA THAT, IN TABLE FOUR I CITE A LOT BECAUSE IN TABLE FOUR THESE ARE THE ESTIMATES OF THE BACKLOGS BY THE VARIOUS SERVICE AREAS THAT YOU TYPICALLY SEE.
THE 2020 COLUMN IS NOT GOOD NEWS.
2020, BASICALLY ALL OF THE BACKLOGS ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAVE GONE UP.
BROADLY SPEAKING, LABORATORIES IN THIS COUNTRY ARE FAILING.
ESPECIALLY IF YOU LOOK AT LIKE FIREARMS. FIREARMS BACKLOG HAS DOUBLED.
BUT ACROSS EVERYTHING IT'S, WE'RE LOSING GROUND.
SO THIS CURRENT SITUATION FOR LABORATORIES IN THE US IS A FAILING POSITION.
THE NEXT THING I POINT TO OUT OF THIS IS TABLE NINE.
THAT IS THE, THE MONEY NUMBERS.
AND I USUALLY POINT AT THE COLUMN THAT'S THE PER REQUEST.
SO THEY BASICALLY TAKE THOSE $3.3 MILLION DIVIDED INTO THE $2 BILLION BUDGET THAT'S AVAILABLE TO THOSE 300 LABS, WHICH THEN COMES OUT WITH THE BACK OF THE ENVELOPE ESTIMATE AVERAGE FUNDING AVAILABLE TO LABORATORIES PER REQUEST OF $620.
SO LABS IN THIS COUNTRY HAVE BASICALLY 600 BUCKS TO DO ALL THE WORK TO STAVE OFF HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS.
AND YOU THINK ABOUT THIS, THAT'S JUST US.
SO LABS ACROSS THIS COUNTRY REPRESENT TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF RISK AND WE GOT 600 BUCKS A REQUEST TO DO THIS.
SO KEEP THAT $2 BILLION NUMBER IN MIND HERE AS I KEEP TALKING 'CAUSE THAT'S THE TOTAL BUDGET AVAILABLE TO LABS IN THE US.
ALRIGHT, THE OTHER STUDY THAT WE USE AND IS BASICALLY THE ONLY THING OUT THERE IS THIS ONE CALLED PROJECT FORESIGHT.
UM, PAUL SPEAKER HAS RUN THIS FOR 20, 25 YEARS.
I'VE KNOWN PAUL FOR PROBABLY MOST OF THAT TIME.
PAUL IS THE ONLY ECONOMIST PRETTY MUCH ON THE PLANET THAT DOES ANYTHING ABOUT THE ECONOMICS.
AND, AND JORDAN'S OVER THERE NODDING HIS HEAD.
'CAUSE I THINK YOU'VE RUN ACROSS PAUL TOO.
UM, HE'S AT WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY, HE'S GOT 211 LABS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THIS.
WE CONTRIBUTE TO IT AND THERE'S UH, 24 INTERNATIONAL LABS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO IT.
WE ALL GIVE PAUL LOTS OF GRIEF ABOUT STUFF THAT DOESN'T QUITE FIT.
NO LAB FITS IT PRECISELY PROBABLY HFSC FITS IT THE LEAST PRECISELY BECAUSE WE REFLECT SOME COSTS IN OUR NUMBERS THAT MOST LABS DON'T.
COST OF THE BUILDING, COST OF HR, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UH, AND THE OTHER ONE THAT I'VE TALKED A LOT WITH PAUL ABOUT IS HIS NUMBERS REFLECT THE AS FUNDED CIRCUMSTANCE.
NOT THIS IS WHAT IT COSTS TO DO THIS WORK, IT'S THE MONEY THAT'S AVAILABLE AND FROM THE CENSUS OF PUBLICLY FUND CRIME LABS, AS I JUST SAID, THAT'S FUNDING THAT IS BASICALLY SUFFICIENT FOR A FAILING SYSTEM.
UM, AND ALSO THERE'S SOME THINGS WHERE IT DOESN'T QUITE FIT BECAUSE HIS DEFINITIONS DIFFER A LITTLE BIT FROM THE PUBLICLY FUNDED CRIME LABS.
BUT, SO THERE'S SQUISH IN THIS JUST BASIC CAVEAT, BUT IF YOU TAKE THESE TWO STUDIES TOGETHER, YOU CAN START TO BACK OUT SOME THINGS.
UM, BECAUSE PAUL GIVES A DISTRIBUTION OF THIS AS FUNDED PER REQUEST.
SO THERE'S 25TH PERCENTILE, A MEDIAN IT'S 75TH PERCENTILE, BREAKS IT UP BY SERVICE TYPE ATTEMPTS TO GIVE A FULLY LOADED KIND OF COST.
AND I MEAN THERE'S A TON OF DATA IN THIS.
IT'S GREAT FOR, YOU KNOW, SCRATCHING THAT DATA NERD ITCH IN 2:00 AM.
UM, BUT YOU CAN TAKE THESE AND START TO DO THINGS LIKE CALCULATE WHAT IS THE COST OF THE NATIONAL BACKLOG ROUGHLY IN 2020.
NOW I ARGUE TO USE THE 75TH PERCENTILE NUMBER BECAUSE THE SYSTEM IS FAILING.
MEDIAN IS CLEARLY NOT ENOUGH MONEY FOR THIS.
75TH PERCENTILE IS NOT ENOUGH MONEY FOR THIS, BUT IT'S AT LEAST A REASONABLE STAB AT WHAT SHOULD WE BE SPENDING PER REQUEST ON THIS KIND OF STUFF NATIONWIDE.
SO IF WE BASICALLY TAKE THOSE NUMBERS FROM THOSE TABLES AND MULTIPLY 'EM TOGETHER, THAT BACKLOG IN THE COUNTRY RIGHT NOW STANDS AT SOMETHING NORTH OF A BILLION DOLLARS.
THAT'S HALF OF THE TOTAL NATIONAL BUDGET AVAILABLE TO ALL OF THE LABORATORIES IN THE COUNTRY.
50%, IF YOU BACK OUT WHAT THAT IS PER REQUEST, THAT'S ABOUT 1400 BUCKS PER REQUEST WEIGHTED ACROSS EVERYTHING.
SO DOES MY LOGIC KINDA MAKE SENSE THERE TO Y'ALL? ANY QUESTIONS SO FAR? YEAH, THESE ARE SCARY NUMBERS.
YOU CAN ALSO CALCULATE OUT OF THIS THE NATIONAL COST OF WHAT THAT REQUESTED WORK
[00:15:01]
MAYBE SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN 2020.SO AGAIN, 75TH PERCENTILE NUMBERS ON EACH OF THE WORK TYPES ADD 'EM UP AGAINST ALL OF THE ESTIMATES OF THE REQUESTED WORK THAT COMES UP TO ALMOST $5 BILLION THAT REALLY IN 2020 WE PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE SPENT ON THE LABORATORIES IN THIS COUNTRY.
SO THAT'S NEARLY 2.3, TWO AND A HALF TIMES WHAT THE ACTUAL FUNDING WAS FOR LABS.
GROSSLY, WILDLY UNDERFUNDING WHAT'S NEEDED.
BUT THAT ALSO STILL COMES OUT TO ABOUT 1400 BUCKS A REQUEST ON AVERAGE ACROSS EVERYTHING.
OKAY, SO HOW ABOUT HFSE SPECIFICALLY? SO WE TAKE THOSE SAME 75TH PERCENTILE STUFF BACK 'EM AGAINST OUR NUMBERS OF WHAT GETS REQUESTED AND WE COME OUT TO ABOUT $2,200 A REQUEST.
SO THINKING THROUGH THIS LOGIC, AND THIS IS WHAT I'M KIND OF TRYING TO EXPLAIN, IS TRYING TO COME AT A NUMBER TO BE ABLE TO TELL EVERYBODY WHAT THIS WORK PROBABLY SHOULD BE COSTING TO EVEN DO KIND OF A MINIMALLY SUFFICIENT JOB SUSTAINABLY.
AND THAT NUMBER IS PROBABLY ABOUT $2,200 A REQUEST FOR US.
NOW WHY IS IT MORE THAN THE 1400 NATIONALLY? WELL, OUR MIXTURE OF WORK IS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THAT NATIONAL MIXTURE.
IF YOU GO BACK AND LOOK AT THAT TABLE, ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHUNKS OF IT IS WHAT'S CALLED DNA DATA BASING.
SO THAT'S THE PROCESSING OF ORAL BUCCAL SWAB COLLECTIONS OF DNA FROM WHAT'S CALLED LEGALLY OWED DNA OR OFFENDER RUSTY DNA.
SO IT'S VERY HIGH CONCENTRATION, THEY'RE VERY CLEAN SAMPLES, IT'S HIGHLY AUTOMATED AND IT IS PROBABLY THE LEAST EXPENSIVE LINE ITEM THAT THE COUNTRY DOES.
UH, IT IS DONE BY THE CODIS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE STATE.
SO THE TEXAS DPS LABORATORY THAT'S IN AUSTIN DOES ALL OF THAT WORK FOR ALL OF THE STATE.
SO THE LEAST COST ITEM OF WORK THAT FLOWS THROUGH FORENSIC LABORATORIES DOESN'T HAPPEN IN CASEWORK COLLAB LIKE US.
LIKEWISE, WE ALSO HAVE A LOWER RATE OF DRUG CASES THAT COME TO US THAN MOST LABORATORIES IN THE COUNTRY.
AND SEIZE DRUG ANALYSIS IS ONE OF THE LOWER COST KINDS OF ANALYSIS OUT THERE.
SO WE ARE IN EFFECT A MIXTURE THAT IS RICH IN DNA AND FIREARMS. TWO OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE THINGS.
SO OUR MIXTURE OF WORK MEANS THE AVERAGE COST ACROSS EVERYTHING FOR US IS HIGHER THAN THE NATIONAL AVERAGE.
BUT IT'S PROBABLY ABOUT 2200 BUCKS.
AND IF WE TALK ABOUT OUR BACKLOG, AND LIKE I SAY AMY WILL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS 'CAUSE TRY, THERE'S A HUGE CONVERSATION GOING ON AMONG ALL THE LABORATORY DIRECTORS AND NIST AND DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ABOUT WHAT DOES BACKLOG MEAN, REALLY, WHAT SHOULD TURNAROUND TIMES B, CAN WE GET AWAY FROM THIS KIND OF ARTIFICIAL DEFINITION? THAT WAS A REALLY A EXPEDIENCY FOR LEGISLATIVE LANGUAGE, BUT IT'S CREATED ISSUES ACROSS THE ENTIRE SYSTEM FOR DECADES NOW.
BUT IF WE LOOK AT OUR BACKLOG, THOSE THINGS OVER 30 DAYS AND WE DO THE SAME KIND OF CALCULATION, OUR BACKLOG IS ABOUT 5.4 MILLION OR ONLY ABOUT 15% OF OUR BUDGET.
SO WE'RE DOING A WHOLE LOT BETTER THAN MOST IN THE NATION.
AND OUR BACKLOG, IF WE WERE TO LOOK AT IT ON A PER REQUEST COST IS ABOUT 1200 BUCKS.
WHY? BECAUSE OUR BACKLOG IS MOSTLY SEIZE DRUGS CASES AND NIBIN CASES.
ANOTHER WAY TO LOOK AT THIS IS, THIS IS THE DANGER OF AVERAGES.
MORE THAN HALF OF THAT BACKLOG ARE THE ROUGHLY 350, 360 FIREARMS EXAMS CASES BECAUSE THEY'RE REALLY EXPENSIVE.
AND THAT'S THE OTHER THING IN THE, IN THE BACKLOG.
SO WE BASICALLY HAVE ONE OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE PIECES OF WORK THAT WE DO IN THE BACKLOG AND SOME OF THE LEAST EXPENSIVE WORK THAT WE DO IN THE BACKLOG.
HENCE WHY 1200 BUCKS? QUESTIONS SO FAR? NOBODY'S FALLEN ASLEEP ON ME.
ALL RIGHT, SO WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN? FIRST OFF, WE ARE SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER FUNDED THAN ALMOST ANYBODY IN THE COUNTRY.
WE'RE AT ABOUT 1500 BUCKS A REQUEST RIGHT NOW WITH OUR CURRENT BUDGET, CURRENT REQUEST LOAD, CURRENT MIXTURE.
THAT'S STILL ABOUT 45 PLUS PERCENT LESS THAN WHAT WE REALLY SHOULD BE AT.
IN MY ARGUMENT THROUGH ALL OF THAT LOGIC TO DO A BASICALLY MINIMALLY SUFFICIENT SUSTAINABLE JOB OF THIS, THAT'S A BIG GAP.
THERE IS NO ONE IN THE RIGHT MIND SHOULD GIVE US A 45 PLUS PERCENT JUMP IN OUR BUDGET IN ONE YEAR.
EVEN IF THEY COULD, WE COULDN'T USE IT.
THESE THINGS TAKE TIME TO BUILD AND PUT IN PLACE, BUT IT'S THERE, THERE IS A BIG GAP YET TO FILL.
IT IS SMALLER THAN ALMOST EVERYBODY ELSE'S GAP.
AND YOU CAN SEE EVEN THERE, THE DIFFERENCE, THE STUFF THAT WE ARE ABLE TO DO, THE THE VISIBILITY THAT WE ARE, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT LOOK TO US FOR ALL OF THE GREAT THINGS THAT WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED
[00:20:01]
IS BECAUSE OF THAT DIFFERENCE THAT WE'RE 45% AWAY INSTEAD OF FOUR TO FIVE TIMES AWAY.BUT IDEALLY, AND THIS IS THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE BUDGET, IDEALLY WE HAVE A STEADY, PREDICTABLE INCREASE.
SOMETHING IN THAT ABOUT 10% ISH RANGE FOR MULTIPLE YEARS TO HELP FILL IN THAT GAP.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE, WHEN WE COME BACK IN MARCH TO PROPOSE A BUDGET, THAT'S BASICALLY WHAT IT'S GONNA BE.
IT'S A LITTLE BIT LIKE WE DID FOR THIS YEAR.
WE'LL HAVE A PRIORITIZED RANKING AND IT'S PROBABLY GONNA BE SOMETHING OF, YEAH, FIREARMS IS RIGHT UP THERE.
WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO WORK AT THAT.
THAT IS THE SINGLE BIGGEST PAIN POINT IS FIREARMS. NEXT AFTER THAT IS PROPERTY.
UM, 'CAUSE THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, FIXED COSTS THAT WE HAVE EXPECTED TO INCREASE THIS NEXT YEAR IS WE WORK ON THAT.
THERE'S SUPPORT POSITIONS, YES, WE NEED ANALYSTS, BUT WE CAN'T FORGET THINGS LIKE AKILA AND THE LEGAL TEAM AND OUR QUALITY GROUP AND IT, AND THOSE THINGS THAT SUPPORT THE WORK THAT THE OTHERS ARE DOING AFTER.
THAT'S PROBABLY TOXICOLOGY, CSU, BUT WE'LL PUT IT IN A RANK ORDER.
UM, IT, YES, ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE NEEDED, BUT THERE'S, THERE'S REALITIES.
THE CITY HAS AN ENORMOUS BUDGET CHALLENGE.
EVERYBODY'S ASKING FOR MONEY, YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO LEAVE THINGS ON THE TABLE AND IT'S OKAY IF EVERYBODY'S COMFORTABLE WITH WHAT WE'RE ADDRESSING AND WHAT WE AREN'T.
ALRIGHT, SO BOTTOM LINE ON THIS HFSE BUDGET SHOULD PROBABLY BE ABOUT $2,200 PER REQUEST.
NOW YES, THERE ARE LOTS OF ASSUMPTIONS IN THAT, LIKE I SAY, THERE'S LOTS OF CAVEATS ON IT.
BUT GIVEN THAT WE STAY AT ABOUT THE SAME NUMBER OF REQUESTS A YEAR AND ABOUT THE SAME MIXTURE, $2,200 REQUEST, THAT MEANS OUR TOTAL BUDGET SHOULD BE ABOUT 55 MILLION.
THAT'S A BIG JUMP INTO DIFFERENCE.
CURRENTLY WE'RE AT ABOUT 55, 1500 BUCKS A REQUEST.
BUT THAT'S 45 PLUS PERCENT LESS THAN WHAT WE NEED NOW.
THERE'S NO PRACTICAL WAY TO DO THAT.
THIS MEANS STEADY INCREASES ACROSS FOUR TO FIVE YEARS.
AND ALSO IN THAT, AND YOU'RE GONNA HEAR A LOT MORE ABOUT THIS ACROSS THIS YEAR, IS A CONTINUED EFFORT TO PUSH AT THE REST OF THE SYSTEM.
WE'VE GOT TO GET BETTER AS A SYSTEM ABOUT HOW WE UNDERSTAND, DETERMINE, MAKE THE CHOICES AROUND WHAT IS THE APPROPRIATE NECESSARY TURNAROUND TIMES AND WHAT IS THE APPROPRIATE NECESSARY WAY OF PRIORITIZING WORK.
UM, AMY AND DAVID CAN TAKE QUESTIONS.
I, I SAID I'VE GOTTA SCOOT ON OUTTA HERE.
UM, BUT I APPRECIATE EVERYBODY'S SUPPORT AND ATTENTION ON THIS.
I HOPE THAT GIVES YOU A LITTLE BIT TO KIND OF THINK ABOUT OF HOW WE'RE FRAMING BUDGET STUFF AND THE WORLD OF FORENSIC LABORATORIES.
UM, AND WITH THAT, I GUESS I WILL TURN IT OVER TO DAVID AND AMY AND I WILL, LET ME JUST GIVE YOU FOR SURE, DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? LAST MINUTE? YOU HAVE TO GO NOW OR? YEAH, PRETTY MUCH SO I CAN GET OVER THERE.
'CAUSE THE, THE PRESS'S AT 10, DOES IT HAVE TO DO WITH THE SIGNS? WITH THE, THE, YEAH, THE PRESSER HAS TO DO WITH PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE.
UM, YOU'LL SEE STUFF HERE SOON, BUT BASICALLY THERE IT'S UM, YOU KNOW, SOME ANNOUNCEMENTS ABOUT PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE.
AMY, AMY'S GOT THE, YEAH, YOU'RE ON.
SO WHILE HE'S PULLING THAT UP, UM, DR. AMY CASTILLO, THE CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER.
AND SO I'LL GO OVER THE FIRST FEW SLIDES OF THE PRESIDENT'S REPORT AND THEN IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, DAVID AND I CAN HELP.
SO JUST SOME SUMMARIES, UM, FOR THIS LAST YEAR AND SOME UPDATES ON BACKLOGS.
SO THE FIRST IS, AS PETER MENTIONED, WE ARE STRUGGLING IN FIREARMS. UM, WE WILL CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE IN FIREARMS. WE LOST EXAMINERS IN THAT AREA OVER THE PAST COUPLE YEARS.
AND OUR ISSUE THERE IS WE WERE ALWAYS ONLY STAFFED EXACTLY AS NEEDED AND WE WERE ACTUALLY SEEING AN INCREASE IN THE COMPLEXITY OF OUR REQUESTS.
SO YEARS AGO WE STARTED KIND OF RAISING THE, THE RED FLAG OF WE'RE STARTING TO SEE SOME ISSUES IN THIS SECTION, THEN WE LOST SOME EXAMINERS.
AND IT TAKES MULTIPLE YEARS TO TRAIN NEW EXAMINERS.
AND IT'S AN AREA WE'RE FINDING EXPERIENCED EXAMINERS IS A BIG CHALLENGE.
WE ALWAYS POST FOR THAT FIRST AND THEN WE WAIT A FEW MONTHS AND WE SAY, NOPE, WE GOTTA BRING IN SOMEBODY NEW 'CAUSE WE'RE WAITING TOO LONG TO TRY TO GET SOMEBODY THAT WE HAVE
[00:25:01]
TO TRAIN LESS.AND SO WHILE ALL OF THAT HAS BEEN GOING ON, CLEARLY REQUESTS KEEP COMING IN.
UM, AND SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT AT THE MOMENT AND WHY WE HAVE A BACKLOG IN THAT SECTION.
THE SECTION HAS BEEN DOING AN AMAZING JOB OF HOLDING IT STEADY.
UM, WE DID SEE OVER A FEW YEARS A STEADY INCREASE IN IT OVER THE LAST YEAR.
IT'S BEEN HANGING OUT RIGHT AROUND THREE 50.
UM, SOMETIMES IT'LL BUMP UP TO THREE 70, SOMETIMES IT'LL GO A LITTLE BIT BELOW THAT.
BUT WE'RE BASICALLY MAINTAINING THERE, UM, WHICH I WANNA SAY NONE OF US WANT A BACKLOG.
HOWEVER, UM, I'M REALLY PROUD OF THAT UNIT FOR ALL THE WORK AND EFFORT THEY'RE PUTTING IN TO KEEP US FROM GETTING FURTHER IN A HOLE.
THEY DO HAVE CURRENTLY FOUR EXAMINERS IN TRAINING.
ONE IS TOWARDS THE END OF HER TRAINING.
ARC THREE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF IT.
SO WE ARE EXCITED THAT THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN.
THAT BEING SAID, THOSE EXAMINERS GET US RIGHT BACK WHERE WE WERE A FEW YEARS AGO WHERE WE WERE SAYING WE'RE STARTING TO HAVE CHALLENGES WITH KEEPING UP WITH THE WORK.
AND THAT'S WHY WHERE WE SAY ONCE WE'RE FULLY STAFFED, WE'RE AT LEAST 12 TO 18 MONTHS OUT FROM TRYING TO CLEAR THAT BACKLOG.
UM, AND REALLY TO GET IT DONE, WE NEED THE ADDITIONAL STAFF POSITIONS AND TO GET MORE EXAMINERS TRAINED.
UM, THE OTHER AREA BIN, WHICH IS THE NATIONAL INTEGRATED DATABASE FOR BALLISTICS, I'M GONNA TRY NOT TO USE THE
THAT IS AN AREA OF FIREARMS THAT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE, IT'S A QUICKER PART OF THE WORK.
UM, IT'S WHEN THEY TAKE GUNS THAT HAVE BEEN FOUND SEIZED AND THEY GET 'EM INTO THIS DATABASE AND THIS DATABASE CAN THEN HELP TIE DIFFERENT SCENES TOGETHER WHERE MAYBE THE SAME FIREARM WAS USED.
NORMALLY OUR GOAL IN THAT PROCESS IS TO HAVE THAT WORK DONE WITHIN FIVE DAYS.
AND WE DID THAT FOR MANY, MANY YEARS.
AND THEN WE LOST OUR NB TECHS, UM, BETWEEN LOSING OUR NB TECHNICIANS AND PROMOTING THEM INTO THOSE FIREARMS EXAMINER TRAINING POSITIONS.
WE ENDED UP IN A, A WORLD OF HURT IN NB BECAUSE WE ENDED UP WITH ONE FULL-TIME NA TECHNICIAN.
AND SO WE'VE DEVELOPED A BACKLOG IN THAT AREA.
PART OF THAT IS WE SAW SOME AMAZING TEAMWORK TO START GETTING THAT RESOLVED.
UM, THAT BACKLOG WAS UP IN THE THOUSANDS EARLIER THIS YEAR.
WE STARTED WORKING WITH THE A TF, THE UM, BUREAU OF TOBACCO AND FIREARMS BECAUSE THEY HAVE A UNIT HERE.
THEY STARTED TAKING SOME OF THEM FROM US BECAUSE WE DON'T WANNA HOLD UP THAT FIVE.
YOU CAN IMAGINE IF YOU'RE TYING A GUN AT A SCENE TO A GUN AT A SCENE THAT IS QUICK, THAT THAT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU WANNA WAIT 30 DAYS FOR.
UM, AND SO THEY BEGAN TO TAKE SOME OF THE, OUR LOAD FROM US SO THAT IT COULD BE GETTING DONE WHILE WE WERE TRYING TO REBUILD NIN.
UM, AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT, HPD HAS ALSO HELPED US IN THE SENSE THAT THEY NOW ARE HELPING US TAKE GUNS STRAIGHT FROM PROPERTY TO THE A TF SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO BE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT.
AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT, EVEN MORE TEAMWORK.
OUR CLIENT SERVICES AND CASE MANAGEMENT CAME TO ME AND VOLUNTEERED.
THEY'RE LIKE, WE SEE THE PROBLEM.
AND SO THEN THEY STEPPED IN TO HELP FIREARMS BECAUSE THEY NEED TO BE FOCUSING ON THEIR BACKLOG, UM, TO ALSO HELP WITH THE GUNS WE HAD ON SITE TO GET THEM TO THE AT TF.
SO WE'VE SEEN THAT BACKLOG IS NOW IN THE SIX HUNDREDS.
UM, AND A LOT OF THAT IS ACTUALLY JUST REPORT WRITING AT THIS POINT BECAUSE OF ALL THE TEAMWORK THAT WENT INTO THAT.
AND CURRENTLY HPD IS IS HELPING US UNTIL WE GET PEOPLE TRAINED.
UM, SO NOW LESS GUNS ARE COMING TO US AND MORE ARE GOING STRAIGHT TO THE A TF, UM, UNTIL WE'RE BUILT BACK UP.
SO THAT IS, UM, THE STORY OF NI.
UM, BUT ALSO THE PROGRESS THAT WE'VE MADE IN THE LAST YEAR IN IN HELPING WITH THAT UNIT.
AND THERE WE HAVE THREE PEOPLE THAT WE'RE HIRING RIGHT NOW TO TRAIN.
UM, SINCE WE GOT THE NEW BUDGET IN JULY, THAT BACKLOG FOR OUR NON-SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT WORK HAS DECREASED BY 44%, WHICH IS A REALLY BIG DEAL.
UM, SO THAT HAS BEEN REALLY HELPFUL TO GET THAT BUDGET INCREASE.
WE ARE STILL OUTSOURCING SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS, WHICH HELPS US FOCUS ON THIS PART OF IT.
AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO MAINTAIN THAT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE OUTSOURCE LABORATORY AT BELOW 90 DAYS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS.
I'M SORRY, BUT WHY DID YOU SAY IT'S DECREASED? IT'S DECREASED BECAUSE PART OF THE FUNDING THAT WE RECEIVED WAS TO OUTSOURCE THE NON SAK WORK, NON-SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT WORK, WHICH WE HAD NOT HAD BUDGET BEFORE.
'CAUSE ALL OF OUR OUTSOURCING BUDGET IN THE PAST HAS COME FROM GRANTS.
AND SO WE'RE LIMITED ON HOW MUCH WE CAN OUTSOURCE TO THE LABORATORIES.
AND WE'VE ALWAY WE GENERALLY PICK CHOOSING OUTSOURCING SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS FIRST, FIRST BECAUSE WE HAVE THE LEGISLATION AROUND THE 90 DAY TURNAROUND TIME ON SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS.
THE OTHER PIECES, THEY'RE VERY EASY TO OUTSOURCE BECAUSE YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE A BOX OF EVIDENCE THAT WE CAN SHIP TO THAT LAB.
[00:30:01]
HAVE A STANDARD PROCEDURE THAT WE USE FOR THAT TESTING AND THEY CAN USE THAT PROCEDURE.UM, VERSUS NON-SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT, WE DON'T KNOW IT, IT COULD BE 20 SAMPLES, IT COULD BE TWO SAMPLES, DIFFERENT KINDS OF CASES.
AND SO IT'S MORE COMPLICATED TO OUTSOURCE AND IT ALSO CAN BE MORE EXPENSIVE.
SO HAVING THE BUDGET TO BE ABLE TO START PLAN FOR THAT, PLANNING FOR THAT.
THE OTHER THING WE DID, UM, AND THIS WAS MORE INTERNALLY, UH, A LITTLE BACKGROUND, MOST OF OUR STAFF ARE SALARY AND SO OVERTIME IS IT'S HARD TO, FOR US TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO IMPLEMENT OVERTIME.
THE MANAGER OF THE SECTION WAS VERY CREATIVE AND CAME UP WITH A REALLY GOOD INCENTIVE PLAN.
UM, AND THAT INCENTIVE PLAN ALSO WAS ACTIVATED AND THAT'S ALSO HELPED.
UM, WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE WORKING EXTRA, UM, TO TRY TO GET THAT BACK LOGGED DOWN.
AND WE ALSO, WITH THE NEW PLAN FROM THE, OUR BUDGET, WHICH WAS TO OUTSOURCE AND HIRE OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, THE GOAL IS TO HIRE 20 PEOPLE AND GET THEM TRAINED IN DNA.
RIGHT NOW THEY'RE LOOKING AT FIVE CANDIDATES TO HIRE THIS YEAR.
SO WE'RE ALSO EXCITED ABOUT THAT BECAUSE WE REALLY ARE ALREADY LOOKING AT THAT TRANSITION FROM BRINGING OUTSOURCING SO MUCH TO BRINGING THE WORK IN HOUSE.
UM, SO WHERE'S THE, THE LABS THAT YOU OUTSOURCE TO, WHERE ARE THEY LOCATED? THE MAIN ONE THAT WE USE IS IN AUSTIN.
THEIR NAME IS SIGNATURE SCIENCE AND WE'VE BEEN USING THEM NOW FOR FOUR OR FIVE YEARS.
UM, IT IS CONVENIENT THAT THEY ARE IN AUSTIN.
SO WHEN, WHEN SOMETHING DOES GO TO COURT AND WE NEED SOMEBODY TO TESTIFY, THEY'RE QUITE CLOSE BY AND THAT MAKES THAT EASY.
UM, WE ALSO SOMETIMES USE BODHI, WHICH IS IN VIRGINIA, BUT RIGHT NOW WE HAVEN'T USED THEM AS MUCH OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.
AND THEN ALSO THE OTHER THING WE HAVE GOING ON IS WITH THE INCREASE IN OUR SPACE IN THE BUILDING AND, UM, HELPING WITH PROPERTY, WE GAINED THE 12TH FLOOR IN OUR CURRENT BUILDING.
AND SO THAT BUILD OUT IS COMPLETE.
UM, AND RIGHT NOW OUR LEAN SIX SIGMA TEAM IS HELPING ALL THE SECTIONS THAT ARE GOING TO MOVE TO GET READY TO MOVE IN APRIL TO THE 12TH FLOOR.
AND THEN ALSO THIS ALLOWS, YOU KNOW, FOR BIOLOGY, WHO'S GOING TO BE GAINING 20 PEOPLE, IT OPENS UP SPACE ON THEIR FLOOR FOR THAT.
AND SO ALSO THEY'LL BE WORKING AFTER THE MOVE TO ADJUST ALL THE OTHER FLOORS TO UTILIZE OUR SPACE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THAT ONE? OKAY, SO NOW I'M GONNA TALK ABOUT AVERAGE AGE OF PENDING
UM, AND SO REALLY QUICK, I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A LITTLE PRIMER ON SOME OF THE, THE METRICS THAT WE USE A LOT.
ONE IS BACKLOG THAT PETER HAD MENTIONED.
BACKLOG HISTORICALLY HAS BEEN OVER 30 DAYS.
THAT'S A DEFINITION THAT CAME FROM LEGISLATION.
IT ACTUALLY STARTED AROUND THE BIOLOGY GRANTS THAT WE GET BECAUSE WE HAVE TO REPORT BACK ON THOSE GRANTS PROGRESS AND THEY DEFINED A BACKLOG AS OVER 30 DAYS.
AND AS A LAB FROM THE TIME I'VE BEEN IN THE LAB, IT THAT DEFINITION THEN WENT ACROSS THE WHOLE ALL DISCIPLINES.
UM, WE ARE REALLY STARTING TO HAVE MORE CONVERSATIONS OF, DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE A FIREARMS, WHICH A CASE ITSELF CAN EASILY TAKE MORE THAN 30 DAYS.
YOU CAN HAVE SOMEBODY DEDICATED TO IT THE WHOLE TIME AND IT COULD TAKE THAT LONG.
AND THE EVIDENCE IS GENERALLY NEEDED DOWN THE ROAD IN COURT.
SO 30 DAYS IS, IS NOT REALISTIC, NOR IS IT WHAT THE STAKEHOLDERS TRULY NEED.
BUT THEN YOU HAVE A SEIZED DRUGS WHO WE COULD, WHEN WE'RE FULLY STAFFED.
I BELIEVE THE TURNAROUND TIME IN THE LAB ASSIGNED TO AN ANALYST RIGHT NOW IS ABOUT SIX DAYS.
UM, AND WHEN WE'VE TALKED TO STAKEHOLDERS, THAT'S MORE ON THE LINES OF THEY WOULD LOVE THAT IN A COUPLE WEEKS BECAUSE THOSE CASES MOVE THROUGH THE SYSTEM SO MUCH FASTER.
AND SO REALLY TRYING TO GET AWAY FROM THIS 30 DAYS FITS ALL, UM, CON CONCEPT OF THE BACKLOG.
BUT IN THAT WE'VE TRIED TO FIND OTHER METRICS AND SOMETIMES IT'S, IT'S HELPFUL TO EXPLAIN THOSE OTHER METRICS.
ONE IS TURNAROUND TIME AND TURNAROUND TIME IS HOW LONG IT TAKES US FROM THE TIME WE GET THE CASE UNTIL WE ISSUE A REPORT.
UM, ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WE'VE HAD WITH THAT IS PEOPLE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN BACKLOGS AND US DECREASING BACKLOGS OF COURSE, AND ALSO TURNAROUND TIME.
BUT BECAUSE THE TURNAROUND TIME IS CALCULATED WHEN A CASE IS COMPLETED, WHEN WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS, THE TURNAROUND TIME GOES UP.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? BECAUSE BASICALLY YOU'RE COMPLETING OLD CASES AT THAT POINT.
I'M, I'M COMPLETING CASES THAT WERE SIX MONTHS OLD AND SO MY TURNAROUND TIME NOW IS GOING UP.
AND SO IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO TELL PEOPLE AND TELL STAKEHOLDERS, YAY, WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS.
BUT OUR TURNAROUND TIME RIGHT NOW IS A HUNDRED DAYS BECAUSE WE WERE WORKING ALL THESE OLD CASES TO, TO
[00:35:01]
CLEAR THE BACKLOG AND THAT'S WHERE THIS AGE OF PENDING COMES IN.SO THE AGE OF PENDING IS ACTUALLY THE AGE OF ALL THE CASES THAT WE HAVE OPEN RIGHT NOW.
SO THIS IS WHAT'S ACTIVELY IN OUR SYSTEM.
UM, AND WE'RE TRYING TO START LOOKING AT THAT MORE SO THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND NOT JUST RETROSPECTIVELY, RIGHT, HOW OLD WAS THE BACKLOG WE CLEARED, BUT REALLY WHAT'S IN OUR PIPELINE RIGHT NOW AND HOW IS THIS NUMBER DOING? THIS GRAPH REALLY IS MORE JUST AN OVERALL OF OUR MAIN SERVICE TYPES.
SO YOU CAN SEE OVER THE LAST YEAR THE TREND LINES OF THOSE AGE OF PENDING, BUT I'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE 'CAUSE IT FOCUSES IN MORE ON SOME OF THEM.
AND SO THIS IS WHERE YOU CAN SEE WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD QUITE A FEW DECREASE THIS YEAR.
DNA IS ONE OF THOSE, AND THIS IS THE PART WHERE I'M SAYING IF YOU LOOKED AT OUR TURNAROUND TIME FOR DNA THIS YEAR, IT WOULD'VE INCREASED BECAUSE WE WERE MAKING THAT PROGRESS IN THE BACKLOG.
HOWEVER, YOU CAN SEE HERE, WHAT IS SITTING IN THE QUEUE TO BE WORKED IS, IS DECREASING IN AGE, WHICH IS A POSITIVE THING.
THAT MEANS WE HAVE LESS OLD WORK THAT IS WAITING TO BE DONE.
SO WE ARE REALLY EXCITED TO SEE THE PROGRESS IN A LOT OF SECTIONS ON THAT METRIC.
AND THEN WE DO HAVE AREAS THAT IT'S INCREASED, UM, ONE BEING FIREARMS AND
AND THAT IS AN AREA WHERE RIGHT NOW IT'S INCREASING BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE WHAT WE NEED ALL THE WAY, ESPECIALLY IN FIREARMS TO START CLEARING THAT BACKLOG.
AND SO WE DO HAVE OLDER CASES SITTING IN THAT QUEUE.
UM, AND WE'RE ALSO BECAUSE OF THAT MANAGING PRIORITIES RIGHT NOW.
AND SO SOMETIMES THAT CAN MEAN A NEWER CASE NEEDS TO BE WORKED FASTER.
AND SO AN OLDER CASE MIGHT STILL SIT THERE AND GAIN IN AGE.
AND THAT'S WHERE WE START SEEING THAT IN THESE METRICS.
THE OTHER IS SEIZE DRUGS AND SEIZE DRUGS.
WE DO HAVE, OUR BACKLOG IS ABOUT 1900 IN THERE RIGHT NOW.
WE ARE PROUD OF THE FACT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO KEEP THE IN JAIL CASES, WHICH MEANS SOMEBODY IS IN JAIL WAITING FOR THOSE RESULTS.
SO WE DO PRIORITIZE THOSE RIGHT NOW BECAUSE WE KNOW THE IMPACT OF NOT HAVING THOSE RESULTS.
UM, BUT WHILE OUR ANALYSTS ARE IN TRAINING, WE HAVE SEEN THE AGE OF ALL THE OTHER REQUESTS, UM, INCREASE IN, IN THAT SECTION.
WE HAVE SIX ANALYSTS IN TRAINING IN THAT SECTION RIGHT NOW.
UM, ONE JUST DID HER MOCK TRIAL, SO LIKE THAT CLOSE TO BEING DONE.
AND THEN WE HAVE THREE WHO JUST ENTERED THE TRAINING PROGRAM.
SO WE DO EXPECT TO START SEEING AN IMPROVEMENT THERE.
UM, AND THEN IN LATENT PRINTS WE, IT INCREASED A LITTLE BIT.
WE'RE NOT OVERLY CONCERNED IN THAT SECTION.
THEY'RE CONTROLLING THE, THE BACKLOG VERY WELL.
UM, WE JUST UNEXPECTEDLY LOST A FEW ANALYSTS IN THEIR TRAINING THEM.
SO WE ALSO EXPECT RIGHT, A LITTLE BIT OF A DELAY THERE, BUT WE'RE NOT, UM, WE'RE NOT CONCERNED ABOUT IT GROWING MORE THAN IT HAS.
AND I BELIEVE THAT IT'S BACK TO WHAT PETER TALKED TO Y'ALL ABOUT.
DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME ON THAT? THEN I HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT, UM, STAFFING, IT SEEMS TO ME IN YEARS THAT I'VE SAT HERE, THAT ALWAYS SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE.
IS IT AN ISSUE BECAUSE, UM, COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND OTHERS AREN'T ATTRACTING PEOPLE FROM WHOM YOU RECRUIT? OR IS IT ALSO THAT WE ARE NOT PAYING SALARIES TO ATTRACT PEOPLE HERE? UM, I, I'M INTERESTED TO KNOW WHAT THE PRO, HOW WE CAN DO THAT.
I THINK THE, ONE OF THE MAIN PROBLEMS IS WE'RE STAFFED RIGHT WHERE WE NEED TO BE.
AND IT TAKES REGARDLESS OF WHETHER WE COULD FILL THE POSITION IN A DAY OR IT TAKES US SIX MONTHS WHEN THAT PERSON COMES IN THE DOOR.
I DON'T, THERE'S ONE A COUPLE AREAS THAT ARE LESS THAN A YEAR IN TRAINING.
SO IF YOU CAN IMAGINE I LOSE A PERSON AND I'M ALREADY BUILDING A HOLE BECAUSE THAT PERSON WAS LOST BECAUSE WE'RE OPERATING, RIGHT? EVEN WE'RE HOLDING OUR HEADS ABOVE WATER, YOU LOSE THAT PERSON.
AND NO MATTER WHO I HIRE, I'M A YEAR AWAY FROM HAVING THAT PERSON BACK ONLINE.
SO THAT'S PART OF THE STAFFING CHALLENGE IS JUST THE IMMEDIATE IMPACT OF LOSING A PERSON.
I THINK WE'VE ACTUALLY LOST A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT OF FORENSICS AND I THINK OVER THE YEARS, ESPECIALLY SINCE COVID, WE'VE SEEN IT, IT IS A VERY STRESSFUL JOB.
UM, AND WE'RE HIRING SCIENTISTS AND SCIENTISTS CAN GO WORK ANYWHERE.
UM, THEY CAN GO WORK FOR A PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY, THEY CAN GO WORK IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY AND THEY'RE NOT HAVING TO TESTIFY.
THEY'RE NOT HAVING TO DEAL WITH A LOT OF THE PRESSURES THAT WE DEAL WITH.
AND SO I ALSO THINK WE'RE DEALING HAVING THAT CHALLENGE OF TRYING TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT ALLOWS FOR PEOPLE TO WANT TO COME TO WORK IN A GOVERNMENT JOB,
[00:40:01]
UM, WITH ALL OF THAT PRESSURE.AND SO I THINK THAT'S PART OF OUR CHALLENGE.
ALSO, THERE'S JUST A LACK OF EXPERIENCED, LACK OF EXPERIENCED FORENSIC ANALYSTS TO HIRE FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE OR THAT WANNA STAY IN FORENSICS.
WHAT'S A BASIC DEGREE DIPLOMA? SOMEBODY HAS TO HAVE TO BE HIRED AT LEAST A BACHELOR'S IN MOST OF OURS.
THEY WANT BIOLOGY, TOXICOLOGY SEES DRUGS, ARE MORE LOOKING FOR MASTER'S DEGREES.
OTHER QUESTIONS? NO OTHER QUESTIONS.
DAVID, DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU WANNA ADD TO THIS PRESENTATION? DAVID LEACH, CFO? NO, I WAS JUST HERE HOPING THAT YOU GUYS WOULDN'T ASK ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE NUMBERS
BUT I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING SPECIFIC FOR THE BOARD.
ANYBODY AROUND THE HORSESHOE THAT HAS QUESTIONS FOR DAVID ABOUT COSTS.
UM, AGAIN, LET ME SAY HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE AND I HOPE THE HOLIDAY SEASON TREATED YOU WELL.
I'D LIKE TO CONTINUE THE INTRODUCTIONS WE DID LAST TIME, AND UNFORTUNATELY, DIRECTORS VASQUEZ AND SILVERMAN WERE NOT HERE.
AND WHAT WE DID WAS JUST TALK A FEW MINUTES, UM, AND NO MORE THAN 30, 40 MINUTES
AND, UH, IT GAVE EVERYBODY AN IDEA OF WHO WE'RE SERVING WITH.
SO IF YOU DON'T MIND, UM, DIRECTOR SILVERMAN, DO YOU WANT TO START? SURE.
I'M MY JED SILVERMAN AND LIFELONG IAN AND I A CRIMINAL DEFENSE.
DID YOU HAVE YOUR, DO YOU HAVE YOUR SPEAKER ON? OH, I'M SORRY.
I'VE LIVED HERE, UH, WAS BORN AND RAISED HERE.
UH, I'M A CRIMINAL, UH, DEFENSE LAWYER, UH, HERE IN HOUSTON.
AND I, UM, BEEN BOARD CERTIFIED IN CRIMINAL LAW.
I'VE BEEN PRACTICING CRIMINAL DEFENSE, UM, FOR 25 YEARS.
AND I DEAL WITH A LOT OF, UM, THESE FORENSIC, UH, ISSUES ALL THE TIME.
SO I KIND OF UNDERSTAND, UM, THE, UH, NUTS AND BOLTS, UH, OF THE PROCESS.
AND SO, YEAH, HAPPY TO BE HERE.
DIRECTOR VASQUEZ, I'LL, I'LL JUMP INTO THAT ONE BECAUSE, UH, I BELIEVE THE LAST TIME THAT YOU INTRODUCED YOURSELF, UM, JED, THAT YOU TOOK A LOT LONGER,
SO I'LL, I'LL BE HAPPY TO GO BEHIND YOU NOW 'CAUSE YOU STARTED THROWING OUT ALL THESE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AND WHATNOT WHERE, UM, I DON'T HAVE, UM, REALLY, UH, AN EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND, BUT I DO HAVE PERSONAL EXPERTISE IN
SO, UM, IN EARLY NINETIES, MYSELF AND MY THREE FRIENDS WERE ACCUSED OF A HORRIFIC CRIME AND ULTIMATELY WAS CONVICTED AND SENT TO PRISON HERE IN TEXAS.
SO AFTER SERVING 13 YEARS AND HAVING THE INNOCENCE PROJECT OF TEXAS, UH, FIGHT FOR MY INNOCENCE, I WAS, UM, EVENTUALLY, UM, FOUND, UM, COMPLETELY INNOCENT BY THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS.
AND SINCE THEN, I HAVE BECOME AN ADVOCATE.
I AM DIRECTOR OF OUTREACH FOR THE INNOCENCE PROJECT OF TEXAS, THE VERY ORGANIZATION THAT HELPED TO SAVE MYSELF AND MY THREE FRIENDS.
AND NOW I AM A PART OF, WELL, I'M ACTUALLY SERVING AS PRESIDENT FOR THE INNOCENCE NETWORK EXECUTIVE BOARD.
SO IT'S MY LIFELONG, UM, COMMITMENT TO HELPING, UM, CHANGE, UH, GIVE BACK, HELP OTHERS, UM, THAT DEAL WITH WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS AND JUST SHED A LIGHT ON THAT.
THEY'RE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE YOU AND AND WE'RE GLAD THAT THINGS ULTIMATELY WORKED OUT FOR YOU.
ANYBODY ELSE THAT FEELS THE NEED TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES OR SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THEMSELVES? OKAY.
JUST TO LET EVERYONE KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO AGENDA ITEM FOUR.
WE'RE GONNA OPEN THE, UH, FLOOR FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND INVITE ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC THAT WISHES TO SPEAK TO COME TO THE PODIUM AND ADDRESS THE BOARD.
WE ASK ALL SPEAKERS TO SIGN IN AT THE FRONT AND WE ARE AWARE OF YOUR PRESENCE.
AND ALL COMMENTS BE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES.
YOU MAY SPEAK ON ANY MATTER CONCERNING THE BOARD AND HFSC AT THIS TIME.
DO WE HAVE ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE WHO HAS SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT? OKAY, SEEING NONE, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD WILL CLOSE.
NOW WE'RE GOING ON TO AGENDA ITEM FIVE.
[00:45:02]
WE WILL CONSIDER THE, UM, MEETING MINUTES FROM NOVEMBER 8TH.DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY CORRECTIONS OR ADDITIONS TO THE MINUTES FROM NOVEMBER 8TH? OKAY, SEEING NO CAUSE CHANGES AT THIS TIME, WE'LL CONDUCT, HOLD ON.
AT THIS TIME WE'LL CONDUCT ADVICE OF A VOICE, VOTE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES.
MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? SO MOVED.
OPPOSED? OKAY THEN MINUTES PASS.
PETER WAS THE NEXT ITEM AND WE'VE DONE THAT.
JACKIE SPOKE, I'M SORRY, WHERE AM I? WE'RE NOT YET.
UM, NOW WE'LL HAVE A REPORT FROM JACQUELINE, MORALE QUALITY DIRECTOR, INCLUDING AN OVERVIEW OF THE BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM, UPDATES ON QUALITY AND TESTIMONY.
UH, AS MENTIONED, MY FIRST TOPIC FOR TODAY IS GONNA BE YOUR BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM.
UM, AS IT'S VERY COMMON FROM MY REPORT, I USUALLY GIVE YOU THE PREVIOUS TWO MONTHS, UH, SUBMISSIONS.
AND IN THIS INSTANCE FOR NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER, WE MET OUR GOALS.
WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY CHALLENGES OR OBSTACLES IN SUBMITTING THIS.
UM, AS YOU MAY RECALL, OUR BLIND QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM, UM, THE QUALITY DIVISION CREATES SAMPLES AND ITEMS THAT MIMIC AND LOOK LIKE ACTUAL EVIDENCE THAT THE SECTIONS RECEIVE.
AND THE INSTANCE, OR THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROGRAM IS BECAUSE THESE BLIND ITEMS LOOK LIKE EVIDENCE.
UM, UM, YOU KNOW, AND THE ANALYST ANALYZE THIS NORMALLY, LIKE THEY WOULD ANY OTHER EVIDENCE.
THIS ALLOWS US TO SEE REAL TIME IF OUR PROCESSES ARE WORKING, AND ALSO ALLOWS US TO SEE THE PROFICIENCY OF OUR ANALYST AS WELL.
AND WE CAN MAKE PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE WANT THIS, IF ANYTHING WAS TO GO WRONG, WE WANT THIS TO HAPPEN ON THE BLIND SAMPLES, RIGHT? WE DON'T WANT THIS TO HAPPEN ON CASE WORK.
SO BECAUSE IT'S THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, I PROVIDED A SLIDE WHERE I HAVE THE ANNUAL GOALS FOR 2024, THE SUBMISSIONS SHOWING THAT WE DID MEET THOSE GOALS, BUT THEN ALSO WE PROVIDED THE NUMBER OF CASES THAT THE SECTIONS HAVE ANALYZED, SO WE SUBMIT ON A MONTHLY BASIS, BUT IT, IT ALL DEPENDS WHEN THE, UM, WHEN THE CASES GET ASSIGNED AND ANALYZED BY THE SECTION.
SO YOU ARE, YOU'RE, YOU ACTUALLY CAN SEE THERE THAT THEY'RE ALSO BEING ANALYZED AS WELL IN CONJUNCTION TO CASE WORK.
UM, SO ANOTHER UPDATE THAT I TYPICALLY GIVE IN JANUARY, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DO FOR OUR PROGRAM, WE DETERMINE OUR SUBMISSION GOALS FROM THE PREVIOUS, UM, CALENDAR YEAR.
WE, UM, WE DO AN ESTIMATE OF A 5% SUBMISSION.
SO IN THIS CASE, WE LOOKED AT THE OUTPUTS FOR 2024 FOR ALL OF OUR SECTIONS, AND WE DETERMINE OUR 5% GOALS FOR THIS YEAR.
AND I'VE PROVIDED THAT DATA IN THAT SLIDE, AS YOU CAN SEE, AND IT'S BROKEN DOWN BY SECTION AND TYPE OF BLIND.
NOW, ANOTHER THING THAT WE OBVIOUSLY, BECAUSE WE'RE IN QUALITY, WE'RE ALL FOR PROCESS IMPROVEMENT.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID THIS YEAR IS WE CREATED A WORKFLOW IN OUR DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, AN IDEAGEN.
AND, UM, AND WE CREATED A WORKFLOW FOR ANALYSTS TO HAVE, UM, A NOTIFICATION WORKFLOW SO ANALYSTS CAN PING US AND NOTIFY US IF THEY THINK THAT THEY'RE ANALYZING A BLIND.
SO IN THE PAST, THIS WAS A VERY MANUAL PROCESS WHERE WE HAD TO SEARCH THROUGH EMAILS TO SEE WHEN BLINDS GOT DISCOVERED.
IN THIS INSTANCE, THIS REPOSITORY OF THE WORKFLOW, WE CAN JUST RUN REPORTS AND IT'LL JUST BE EASIER.
AND ANOTHER THING, THIS WORKFLOW ALSO GOES TO DR. STOUT.
SO AT THE START OF THE BLIND PROGRAM, HE CREATED AN INCENTIVE WHERE IF AN ANALYST DISCOVERS A BLIND, THEY GET A STARBUCKS GIFT CARD.
AND YES, SO PEOPLE REALLY LIKE THEIR COFFEE.
SO WE, UM, ANYWAYS, THIS IS ANOTHER WAY FOR HIM TO KEEP IN THE LOOP AND SEEING IF SOMEBODY HAS A GIFT CARD.
BUT THE OTHER, THE OTHER THING IS IF YOU DON'T, AND IT'S NOT A BLIND, YOU OWE HIM A DOLLAR.
SO ANYWAYS, I THINK HE'S GOTTEN ONCE PAID IN PENNIES.
UM, SO ANYWAY, TOO BAD HE'S NOT HERE TO, TO TELL THAT STORY.
UM, SO WE, SINCE WE IMPLEMENTED THE SUSPECTED BLIND QC NOTIFICATION WORKFLOW, WE GOT FIVE NOTIFICATIONS.
UH, TWO OF THESE WERE ACTUAL BLINDS.
AND AGAIN, WE LIKE THIS BECAUSE WE HAVE, UH, A SECTION IN THE WORKFLOW FOR THEY CAN LET US KNOW WHAT ARE THE RED FLAGS, RIGHT? WE KIND OF WANNA SEE WAS IT THE OFFENSE, WAS IT THE SUSPECT? OR WHAT WAS, WHAT PINGED YOU THAT THIS WAS A BLIND? SO WE CAN CORRECT THAT
[00:50:01]
AND OBVIOUSLY, AGAIN, IMPROVE OUR SUBMISSIONS.AND AGAIN, IT'S VERY CHALLENGING TO CREATE SOMETHING THAT LOOKS LIKE EVIDENCE WE'VE LEARNED AND EVEN, UM, HANDWRITING AND WHATNOT.
SO IT'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN, ANYWAYS, IT'S BEEN A LEARNING.
UM, BUT THE OTHER THREE THAT WERE SUBMITTED ACTUALLY WEREN'T IN BLINDS.
AND, UH, SO JUST FUNNY STORY THAT I WANTED TO SHARE, ONE OF THOSE SUBMISSIONS OR NOTIFICATIONS WHERE THEY THOUGHT IT WAS A BLIND, UH, THE SUSPECT'S NAME WAS MINNIE VERMAN MOUSE.
SO THAT WAS WHY THEY THOUGHT IT WAS A BLIND.
AND SO WE HAD TO ASSURE THE ANALYSTS THAT WE'RE NOT THAT CREATIVE.
AND AGAIN, OUR INTENT IS TO GO UNDER THE RADAR.
SO ANYWAYS, JUST A FUNNY STORY OF, UM, THE THINGS THAT WE GET, BUT AGAIN, IT'S JUST NICE TO HAVE A CENTRALIZED REPORT NOW FOR US TO RUN AND, AND BE ABLE TO KIND OF SHOW THOSE METRICS.
AND MOVING ALONG TO MY NEXT TOPIC.
UH, FOR QUALITY UPDATES, I ONLY HAVE TWO.
SO AS YOU MAY RECALL, OUR CLIENT SERVICES CASE MANAGEMENT SECTION GOT ACCREDITED LAST YEAR TO A A'S PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE, UM, ACCREDITATION PROGRAM.
SO FOLLOWING SUIT, UH, FOR A AND A B FOR BOTH OR 17 0 2 5, AND IN THIS CASE THE PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE A AND A B CONDUCTS YEARLY CONFORMANCE VERIFICATION ACTIVITY.
SO THEY HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE STILL CONFORMING TO ALL OF THE ACCREDITATION REQUIREMENTS.
SO BECAUSE IT WAS THE INITIAL ACCREDITATION FOR CSEM LAST YEAR, THIS YEAR WE DIDN'T HAVE, WELL LAST YEAR, THEY LOOKED AT EVERY SINGLE CLAUSE TO MAKE SURE WE WERE CONFORMING TO IT.
SO THIS YEAR WE GOT A LITTLE BIT OF A BREAK.
SO WE HAD A SURVEILLANCE DOCUMENT REVIEW WHERE THEY ONLY LOOKED AT 17 CLAUSES FOR CONFORMANCE, AND IT WAS DONE VIRTUALLY.
SO IT WAS JUST A LITTLE EASIER FOR S AND CSCM.
AND, UH, SO WE HELD THIS SURVEILLANCE DOCUMENT REVIEW THE WEEK OF DECEMBER THE NINTH.
UH, THE LEAD ASSESSOR LOOKED AT THE 17 CLASSES AND THERE WERE NO NON-CONFORMANCES NOTED.
SO CSCM CONTINUES ACCREDITED TO THIS PROGRAM.
AND, UH, NEXT YEAR, BECAUSE IT'S A TWO YEAR ACCREDITATION CYCLE, WE WILL FORESEE THIS TO BE THEIR REASSESSMENT.
SO THEY, UH, WILL COME HERE ON SITE AND THEY'LL LOOK AT ALL OF THE DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE CONFORMING TO THEM.
MY OTHER UPDATE IS WE ARE GONNA BE HOSTING, UH, A B'S FORENSIC TECHNICAL ASSESSOR TRAINING CLASS.
UH, THIS IS GONNA BE CONDUCTED DURING THE WEEK IN A VIRTUAL FORMAT DURING THE WEEK OF FEBRUARY 11 TO THE 14.
AND WE ACTUALLY HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE SIGN UP FOR THIS.
AND THE REASON WHY WE LIKE THIS CLASS IS BECAUSE FOR THE TECHNICAL ASSESSOR, UH, CLASS THIS, THIS TRAINING IS FORMATTED THE, THEY GIVE YOU A REVIEW OF THE ISO 17 0 2 5 STANDARD OF ALL OF THE ACCREDITATION REQUIREMENTS.
AND IN ADDITION, IT SHOWS THE ANALYSTS, UM, WHAT A NAB, LIKE HOW TO BECOME AN ASSESSOR, HOW TO BECOME AN AUDITOR, AND, AND HOW TO AUDIT OTHER LABORATORY OR FORENSIC LABORATORY SPECIFICALLY WITHIN THEIR SECTIONS, THE, YOU KNOW, YEAH, WITHIN THEIR SECTIONS.
AND, UH, THE REASON WHY WE LIKE THIS A LOT IS BECAUSE ONCE THEY TAKE THIS, UM, CLASS, UM, THEY'RE ABLE, BECAUSE THEY'RE ABLE TO SEE WHAT A A B IS GONNA BE LOOKING AT AND HOW THEY VERIFY AND CHECK FOR CONFORMANCE INDIRECTLY, IT HELPS THEM PREPARE THEIR SECTIONS, NOT ONLY FOR INTERNAL AUDITS, BUT WHEN ASSESSMENT COMES AROUND, THEY HAVE THAT KNOWLEDGE TO KNOW LIKE, HEY, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THIS IS LABELED EVERYTHING THIS IS DOCUMENTED OR WHATNOT.
AND, UM, AND THE OTHER REASON WHY WE LIKED HOSTING THIS CLASS IS BECAUSE IT FOSTERS LEARNING EXPERIENCES FROM THE EXAM OR THE ANALYST, WHENEVER THEY BECOME A TECHNICAL ASSESSOR AND THEY GO TO ANOTHER LABORATORY, THEY CAN LOOK AT OTHER PROCESSES FROM OTHER LABORATORIES AND SEE HOW THEY APPLY THEIR PROCESSES TO CONFORM TO THE DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS.
AND THEY CAN BRING THAT KNOWLEDGE AND IDEAS BACK AND WE CAN SEE IF WE CAN, I GUESS, IMP AGAIN, IMPROVE OUR PROCESSES ON OUR END.
AND, UH, TYPICALLY WE'VE BEEN HOSTING THIS TRAINING EVERY OTHER YEAR AND IT'S BEEN WORKING OUT BECAUSE IT KIND OF ALLOWS FOR A AND A B, THERE'S A TWO YEAR, I BELIEVE, UH, REQUIREMENT THAT THEY HAVE TO BE DOING CASE WORK BEFORE THEY CAN BECOME TECHNICAL ASSESSORS.
SO DOING THIS EVERY OTHER TWO, UH, EVERY OTHER YEAR, UM, IT ALLOWS ANALYSTS TO GAIN THAT EXPERIENCE IN THE BENCH.
SO WHENEVER THEY TAKE THIS CLASS, THEY CAN APPLY AND BECOME A PART OF THAT ASSESSOR POOL.
I'M A PERSONALLY A FORENSIC TECHNICAL ASSESSOR AND, UM, I'VE GONE TO MEXICO AND THERE'S ALSO DIFFERENT OPPORTUNITIES INTERNATIONALLY TO GO AND, AND TO CONDUCT THIS.
SO, UM, WITH THAT, THAT CONCLUDES MY, MY PRESENTATION, BUT I'VE PROVIDED OTHER DATA FROM OUR OTHER PROGRAMS AND THE DETAILED DATA.
UM, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? UM, I HAVE A QUESTION AND MAYBE I'M JUST NOT UNDERSTANDING THE GRAPH.
UM, SO IT'S THE BLIND QUALITY CONTROL SUBMITTED IN 2024 SLIDE.
AND SO JUST TAKING, FOR EXAMPLE, BIOLOGY YES.
THAT YOU'VE GOT, THE ANNUAL GOAL IS 36.
YOU SUBMITTED 36, BUT ONLY 10 HAVE BEEN ANALYZED.
CORRECT? I GUESS YOU CAN SEE, UM, WELL, BECAUSE
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THESE CASES GET ASSIGNED LIKE REAL CASES, UHHUH, UM, THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY WOULD BE PART OF THE BACKLOG.BUT YOU CAN SEE, FOR EXAMPLE, TOXICOLOGY, UM, ANALYZED MORE SO THEY'RE WORKING THROUGH THEIR BACKLOG AND COMPLETING THEM.
SO WE, WE DON'T PRIORITIZE THEM OR ANYTHING, THEY JUST GET SUBMITTED LIKE REAL CASES.
SO IN THE PREVIOUS SLIDE, I MEAN, IT LOOKS GREAT BECAUSE THE MONTHLY GOAL SUBMITTED AND YEAH, EVERYTHING IS ALL THE SAME.
EXACTLY LIKE WE MET THEM, BUT WE ALSO GIVE YOU THE DATA OF LIKE HOW ALONG THE PROCESS THESE BLINDS ARE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
IT'S ALWAYS A LOT FOR YOU TO GET TO US AND FOR US TO UNDERSTAND, BUT I, I THINK WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB OF IT.
AND IT'S, WE'RE TRYING, IT'S FUN TO SHARE THESE STORIES, RIGHT? UM, HERE AND THERE, THE STORIES THAT WE GET.
I THINK THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM IS THE ADJOURNMENT OF THE MEETING.
PETER WAS TALKING ABOUT THE BUDGET THAT'S COMING UP AND IT'S GONNA COME UP BEFORE CITY COUNCIL.
AND UM, ACTUALLY JOANIE AND I MET WITH PETER AT LUNCH ONE POINT ABOUT A MONTH AGO TO TALK ABOUT WHAT CAN WE DO AS BOARD MEMBERS TO REACH OUT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS SO THAT THEY HAVE A BETTER HANDLE ON WHAT IT IS WE'RE DOING BECAUSE WE'RE THE BEST ADVOCATES FOR THAT.
AND SO, IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, MAYBE AS WE CONTINUE OUR DISCUSSION WITH PETER, IT MIGHT BE THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO WORK WITH A, AN APPROVED AGENDA FOR EACH OF US AND KIND OF ATTACH OURSELVES TO A COUNCIL MEMBER AND ASK FOR A MEETING OF 15 MINUTES SO THAT WE CAN SIT THERE AND TALK WITH THEM ABOUT WE AS EVERYDAY FOLK UNDERSTAND WHAT THE FORENSIC SCIENCE CENTER IS DOING, WHY THE NEED FOR MONEY, WHY, YOU KNOW, WHY THERE IS A NEED NOT TO ASK FOR MORE MONEY THAN WE CAN USE, YOU KNOW, THE KINDS OF THINGS THAT PETER TALKED ABOUT.
SO, UH, I THINK THE BOARD IS TERRIFIC, I'M THRILLED TO BE ON IT.
AND JUST TO LET YOU KNOW THAT WE MAY BE HEADED IN THAT DIRECTION TO USE YOUR CONTACTS AND YOUR EXPERTISE AND UM, AND REALLY HELP PEOPLE GET A HANDLE ON IT.
BECAUSE I KNOW WHEN I TELL PEOPLE THAT I, ON THE BOARD OF THE HOUSTON FORENSIC SCIENCE CENTER, THEY GIVE ME THIS LOOK LIKE, WHAT, WHAT, WHAT'S THE HOUSTON FORENSIC? AND WHEN I EXPLAIN, IT'S LIKE THAT TV PROGRAM, WHAT IS IT? CSI, HUH? C-S-I-C-S-I, THEN THEY UNDERSTAND IT.
BUT, UM, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR EVERYDAY FOLK, BUT IN PARTICULAR COUNCIL MEMBERS.
'CAUSE I'VE SAT ON COUNCIL AND I'VE HAD TO APPROVE OR DISAPPROVE A BUDGET.
AND IF I DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT, IT TENDS TO GET A NEGATIVE.
ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
SO, UM, I'VE, FIRST OF ALL THE, THE, THE WAY THESE MEETINGS ARE STRUCTURED ARE VERY, VERY HELPFUL, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE HEAR FROM THE STAFF ABOUT WHAT IS ACTUALLY GOING ON IN THE PROGRAM.
SO IT'S EASIER TO UNDERSTAND 'CAUSE THERE'S SO MUCH DATA.
BUT ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE, JUST IN TERMS OF WHAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT, ABOUT THE BUDGET AND JUST REACHING OUT TO THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, IS THERE, ARE THERE MAYBE SOME TALKING POINTS THAT WE CAN HAVE, UH, SO THAT IT'S EASIER TO TALK ABOUT AND JUST HIT THOSE POINTS THAT ARE, THAT ARE, ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT AROUND THE BUDGET? ABSOLUTELY.
THAT'S WHAT I WAS REFERRING TO, BULLET POINTS THAT, THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WITH PETER.
AND I MEAN, WE'RE NOT EXPECTED TO DELIVER THE KIND OF MESSAGE THAT WE GOT TODAY.
UM, BUT CLEARLY A WORKING DOCUMENT, BULLET POINTS, THREE OR FOUR KEY ISSUES WHY WE'RE ASKING FOR THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE ASKING FOR AND WHAT IT'LL DO.
AND HOPEFULLY WE'LL GET THAT TO ALL YOU AND ALL OF US, UM, AS, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
YEAH, I THINK IT'S AN EXCELLENT IDEA.
AND I JUST, I WAS GONNA REQUEST THE SAME THING THAT SONYA ALREADY DID.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS, QUESTIONS? ALRIGHT.
UM, UM, I'LL CALL FOR A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND STAY WARM.