[Houston Forensic Science Center: Board of Directors Meeting on January 9, 2026.]
[00:00:21]
MADAM SECRETARY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLE? YES, MADAM CHAIR.AND THAT CONCLUDES THE ROLL CALL.
WE'LL PROCEED TO ITEM THREE, WHICH IS MY REPORT.
I'D LIKE TO BEGIN BY SAYING HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE, AND I HOPE THE HOLIDAY SEASON TREATED YOU WELL.
WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT ALL THE WONDERFUL WORK THAT, UH, HFSC WILL DO THIS YEAR, AND THE WAYS IN WHICH THIS BOARD WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE ORGANIZATION'S SUCCESS.
I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH EACH OF YOU IN 2026, AND I HOPE IT'S A PEACEFUL, SAFE, UH, SECURE AND, UM, HAPPY AND HEALTHY YEAR FOR EVERYONE, PARTICULARLY PEACEFUL.
NEXT, I'D LIKE TO THANK DIRECTOR VASQUEZ FOR TAKING THE TIME TO TOUR HFSC AND THE VEB IN DECEMBER WITH HER COUNTERPART FROM THE TEXAS INNOCENCE PROJECT.
I TRUST THAT EVERYTHING WENT WELL, AND I'M GLAD THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO DO THAT.
AT THIS POINT, I BELIEVE ALMOST EVERY BOARD MEMBER HAS TAKEN A TOUR OF THE VEB, WHICH IS GREAT.
HOW IS EVERYONE MOSTLY AROUND THE TABLE? FEBRUARY
I MEAN, IT REALLY GIVES YOU A HANDLE ON WHAT'S HAPPENING.
THANK YOU, UH, DR. STOUT AND, UM, MS. HALEY FOR SCHEDULING THESE TOURS, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO SEE THE AMAZING WORK THAT THE STAFF IS DOING.
LASTLY, I WANNA REMIND THE BOARD THAT WE ARE FAST APPROACHING BUDGET SEASON YET AGAIN.
PLEASE TAKE NOTE THAT DURING THE MARCH BOARD MEETING, WE WILL HEAR THE PROPOSED, UH, FY 27 BUDGET AS PRESENTED BY DR. STOUT AND MR. LEACH, OUR CFO.
BECAUSE THIS IS A TIME SENSITIVE VOTING ITEM, WE WILL NEED ALL MEMBERS TO ATTEND BOARD MEETINGS IF POSSIBLE.
THE MEETINGS SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 13TH.
AS USUAL, MR. LEACH WILL SEND US AN EMAIL WITH A MORE DETAILED EXPLANATION OF THE BUDGET, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO REVIEWING THAT.
WE HAVE SEVERAL CHALLENGES AHEAD FOR US IN FY 27, AND WE NEED EVERYONE'S INPUT TO ENSURE THE BUDGET REFLECTS THE ORGANIZATION'S PRIORITIES FOR THE COMING YEAR.
WITH THAT, I CONCLUDE MY REPORT.
NOW WE'LL PROCEED WITH AGENDA ITEM FOUR.
AT THIS TIME, WE'LL OPEN THE, AT THIS TIME, WE'LL OPEN THE FLOOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND INVITE ANY MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC THAT WISHES TO SPEAK TO COME TO THE PODIUM, ADDRESS THE BOARD.
WE ASK ALL SPEAKERS TO SIGN IT AT THE FRONT OF THE ROOM SO WE'RE AWARE OF YOUR PRESENCE AND THAT ALL COMMENTS BE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES.
YOU MAY SPEAK ON ANY MATTER CONCERNING THE BOARD AND HFSC AT THIS TIME.
AT THIS TIME, WE HAD, DO WE HAVE ANYONE APPARENTLY NOT SEEING NO MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN OUR AUDIENCE TODAY, WE'VE SIGNED, WHO SIGNED UP FOR THE COMMENT.
I'LL CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENT SESSION.
NATALIE, WE'LL HAVE A TIMER READY FOR, WELL, WE DON'T NEED A, SO THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD IS CLOSED AT THIS TIME.
NOW, I'LL CONSIDER MEETING MINUTES FROM THE NOVEMBER 14TH, 2025 BOARD MEETING.
DOES ANYONE HAVE CORRECTIONS OR ADDITIONS TO THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED? NO.
AT THIS TIME, WE'LL CONDUCT A VOICE.
MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? MOTION? THANK YOU.
ANY DISCUSSION, PLEASE UNMUTE YOUR MICS AT THIS TIME FOR THE VOICE VOTE.
THE MOTION CARRIES UNANIMOUSLY.
PROCEED TO ITEM NUMBER SIX, WHICH IS OUR PRESIDENT'S REPORT.
AND I KNOW THIS MEETING WILL LAST PRECISELY AS LONG AS I TALK, SO
WE HAVE CLASSICALLY USED JANUARY AS KIND OF A SETUP
[00:05:01]
FOR THE BUDGET DISCUSSION IN MARCH AND GIVE YOU SOME PERSPECTIVES OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED ACROSS THIS LAST CALENDAR YEAR.REMEMBER LAST MEETING, I REALLY KIND OF GAVE MORE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT WE SAW HAPPEN ACROSS THIS LAST CALENDAR YEAR, AND TRY AND GIVE YOU AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT OF A FORWARD LOOK OF WHAT WE CAN SEE ON THE HORIZON IN THE NEXT CALENDAR YEAR.
ALRIGHT, SO, FORENSIC BIOLOGY, WE'LL START THERE.
'CAUSE THIS IS, YOU KNOW, THE, THE BACKLOG THAT EVERYBODY IS PROBABLY NATIONWIDE THE MOST CONCERNED WITH.
AND THAT IS A REALLY NICE GRAPH TO SEE.
UH, I, AMY AND I WERE TALKING ABOUT THIS EARLIER THAT I DON'T THINK ACROSS THE LAST 10 YEARS WE HAVE EVER FELT AS GOOD ABOUT WHERE WE'RE AT IN BIOLOGY.
UM,
UM, YOU CAN SEE THE BULGE IN THE GREEN LINE, WHICH ARE THE SAS.
UH, THAT WAS THE KAIGEN MANUFACTURING ISSUE, AND WE EXPECTED THAT TO GO UP AND COME DOWN.
BUT WE LITERALLY HAVE A HUNDRED-ISH BACKLOG, DNA REQUESTS ANYMORE.
AND YOU THINK ABOUT HISTORICALLY WHAT THAT MEANS FROM DECADES AGO WHEN THERE WERE TENS OF THOUSANDS.
I MEAN, THAT IS AN ASTONISHING ACCOMPLISHMENT FOR THE STAFF.
UM, BUT WE HAVE DECREASED THE SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT BACKLOG BY 73%.
WE HAVE A GRAND TOTAL OF 30 SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS THAT ARE OVER THE STATE MANDATED 90 DAYS RIGHT NOW.
WE WILL PROBABLY THAT, THAT, THAT NUMBER IS, YOU FIGURE WE GET ABOUT, UH, A HUNDRED, 120 KITS A MONTH.
SO TO HAVE 30 KITS OVER 90 DAYS IS REPRESENTATIVE OF COMPLEX KITS THAT ARE JUST COMPLICATED TESTING STUFF THAT'S HAD TO COME BACK AROUND.
I MEAN, THERE'S ALWAYS GONNA BE A HANDFUL OF THEM LIKE THAT.
SO THAT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO CURRENT ON EVERYTHING.
UM, WE HAVE SIGNED OFF 13 STAFF MEMBERS, SIX OF WHICH ARE DNA ANALYSTS.
THAT IS A MASSIVE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF ANALYSTS.
AND REMEMBER, ANALYSTS ARE THE ONES THAT ARE DOING THE REPORT WRITING, THE INTERPRETATION, THE TESTIMONY.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE THE, THE END PRODUCT THAT DEALS WITH MOST OF THAT STUFF.
WE PLAN ON SIGNING OFF THREE MORE DNA ANALYSTS AND TWO SCREENERS IN 2026.
AND PROBABLY THE BIGGEST THING FOR 2026 WILL BE A SHIFT AS WE HAVE PLANNED WHEN WE STARTED OUT ON THIS, SHIFTING AWAY FROM OUTSOURCING TO MORE INTERNAL TESTING.
WE, WE ARE AT THAT POINT WHERE WE START BRINGING STUFF IN-HOUSE.
THAT'S GONNA BE THE BIG THING FOR THIS YEAR.
NOW, THINGS THAT ARE A RISK FOR FORENSIC BIOLOGY OVER THIS YEAR.
UM, THE CAPACITY ENHANCEMENT, BACKLOG REDUCTION, SEBER FUNDING.
I'VE HAD A FEW CONVERSATIONS WITH DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
THEY CLEARLY ARE PROCESSING ON STUFF.
WE STILL HAVE NOT SEEN AWARDS, STILL HAVE NOT SEEN FUNDING RELEASED.
WE HAVEN'T EVEN SEEN THE AWARDS.
DID I MENTION WE HAVEN'T EVEN SEEN THE AWARDS YET.
UM, THAT'S GONNA HAVE IMPLICATIONS.
I DON'T IT, IT'S DIFFICULT TO PREDICT WHAT IT IS, BUT THE DELAYS IN FEDERAL FUNDING ARE GOING TO HAVE ISSUES FOR US.
THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE ISSUES NATIONWIDE.
UM, MANAGING THIS TRANSITION FROM SAT'S OUTSOURCING TO IN-HOUSE TESTING.
I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S A BIG CHANGE.
ANYTIME THERE'S CHANGE, THERE'S RISK.
AND WE ARE SEEING JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, INCREASES IN MATERIALS COSTS, INCREASES IN LABOR, COSTS, INCREASES IN ALL OF THESE THINGS.
UM, I MENTION ON HERE IN BIOLOGY IN PARTICULAR POST-CONVICTION CASES, UM, YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND THAT WE PROBABLY, I CAN'T SAY, YOU KNOW, DEFINITIVELY TEXAS DPS PROBABLY HAS THE, THE MOST CASES THAT ARE TEND TO BE IN POST-CONVICTION TESTING.
SO CAPITAL CASES, THOSE ARE REALLY WHAT A DEATH PENALTY CAPITAL CASE IN TEXAS IS AUTOMATICALLY APPEALED TO THE CCA, WHAT'S CALLED A, A MINI CAP, UM, A LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE KIND OF CAPITAL CASE.
YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE CASES THAT PEOPLE PAY ATTENTION TO AND THOSE ARE THE CASES THAT TEND TO GET APPEALED.
HAVE A LOT OF POST-CONVICTION WORK.
WE HAVE THE LION'S SHARE OF THOSE HERE IN HARRIS COUNTY AND THAT COME THROUGH US.
SO THESE CASES ARE VERY COMPLICATED.
THEY ARE VERY EXPENSIVE, THEY ARE VERY LENGTHY.
AND WE HAVE MULTIPLE OF THESE FLOWING THROUGH RIGHT NOW.
UM, I'M AWARE OF MULTIPLE OF THESE.
THERE WAS JUST AN ARTICLE IN THE CHRONICLE LAST WEEK TALKING ABOUT THE NUMBER OF DEATH PENALTY CAPITAL CASES AND MANY CAPS THAT ARE LIKELY TO GO TO TRIAL IN THIS NEXT YEAR.
THEY ARE ALSO CASES THAT DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECT FORENSIC BIOLOGY
[00:10:01]
AND FIREARMS. SO THERE, IT'S REALLY DIFFICULT TO PREDICT HOW BIG THOSE IMPACTS ARE, BUT THEY CAN BE REALLY SUBSTANTIAL.ANY QUESTIONS ON FORENSIC BIOLOGY? WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT MOVING TO IN-HOUSE ANALYSIS, SO WHAT DO IT A DIFFERENT WAY? SO WHAT PERCENTAGE OF OVERALL CASES ARE HAVE YOU BEEN OUTSOURCING? WE HAVE BEEN OUTSOURCING THE SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS.
UM, BUT WHAT PERCENTAGE BASICALLY IN THAILAND? AMY, YOU, YOU CAN PROBABLY ANSWER THIS.
I'M JUST WONDERING HOW MUCH CASELOAD'S GONNA BE ADDED ON ONCE YOU START DOING EVERYTHING IN HOUSE.
HI, AMY CASTILLO, THE CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER.
UM, WE GET ABOUT A THOUSAND TO 1200 SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS A YEAR.
AND WE HAVE BEEN OUTSOURCING ALL OF THOSE FIRST FOR SEVERAL YEARS.
SO, AND RIGHT NOW IT PROBABLY IS GONNA ABOUT DOUBLE OUR CASELOAD.
THAT'S A QUESTION WE HAVE IN-HOUSE.
THOSE RIGHT NOW WE'RE PROCESSING IN-HOUSE, BUT WE DID OUTSOURCE OVER THE LAST YEAR.
WE BASICALLY OUTSOURCED PART OF OUR BACKLOG SO THAT WE COULD GET CURRENT WITH NON SACS.
SO THAT PART'S ALREADY TRANSITIONED TO BEING BACK IN HOUSE.
THE S A'S, LIKE I SAID, A THOUSAND TO 1200 A YEAR.
WE'VE BEEN OUTSOURCING THOSE A HUNDRED PERCENT ALMOST SINCE COVID.
SO WHAT YOU'VE BEEN OUTSOURCING BOTH SAK AND NON SAK HAS BEEN ABOUT HALF OF YOUR CASELOAD? YES.
THIS IS THE LARGEST JUST BY SHEER, UH, REQUEST NUMBER BACKLOG.
UM, AND WE EXPECT WE WILL SEE THIS CONTINUE TO STEADILY DECREASE ACROSS THE YEAR.
NOW, I, I PUT, UM, WE'VE REDUCED MARIJUANAS, OH, HEMP REALLY PAYING ATTENTION TO THE NON MARIJUANA BACKLOG.
UM, THAT HAS DECREASED BY NEARLY HALF.
UM, I FORESEE THAT CONTINUING TO DECREASE REALLY PRETTY STEADILY.
UM, WE'VE GOT THREE ANALYSTS IN TRAINING AND WE ALSO HAVE VALIDATION WORK ON THE LCQ TO F ARE THE PROBABLY THE BIG THINGS THAT ARE GONNA HAPPEN ACROSS THIS NEXT YEAR.
AND I PUT BACKLOG, STABILIZING.
I THINK WE ARE BASICALLY ALWAYS JUST SUPERSTITIOUS ABOUT SAYING WE'RE GONNA GET RID OF A BACKLOG BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE WE PUT THAT OUT IN THE UNIVERSE.
SOMETHING HITS US IN THE HEAD.
UH, SO I SAY BACKLOG, STABILIZING, BUT I THINK IT'S, IT'S REALISTIC TO THINK WE WE'RE GONNA MAKE GOOD HEADWAY ON THAT BACKLOG ACROSS THIS YEAR.
UM, THE RISKS FOR 2026 VALIDATING A BIG NEW PIECE OF EQUIPMENT CAN BE UNPREDICTABLE.
IT'S A LOT OF LABOR INVESTMENT.
IT'S A LOT OF WORK TO DO THAT.
AND LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY AND ACCURATE TIME OF FLIGHT.
MASS SPEC IS A VERY NEW TECHNOLOGY TO SEIZE DRUGS.
THAT'S THE SAME THING EVERYWHERE.
WE HAVE SOME REALLY GOOD TALENT IN-HOUSE OVER IN TOXICOLOGY THAT IS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THESE TECHNOLOGIES AND CAN HELP THEM.
BUT IT'S GONNA BE A STEEP LEARNING CURVE FOR SEIZE DRUGS ON USING THIS TECHNOLOGY.
INCREASED COST OF MATERIALS, UH, THIS IS AFFECTING EVERYTHING.
LABOR COSTS, MATERIALS COSTS, EVERYTHING ON THAT.
WE'RE SEEING INCREASES, UM, ON ALL OF THAT, IN ALL OF THE SECTIONS.
AND I WISH I HAD AN ANSWER FOR HEMP MARIJUANA, BUT I JUST DON'T.
UM, ON DECEMBER 25TH, DEPARTMENT OF, UH, HEALTH AND SAFETY AT THE STATE LEVEL ISSUED PROPOSED RULES FOR COMMERCIAL HEMP PRODUCTS.
WE ARE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IF THOSE MAKE ANYTHING EASIER OR HARDER.
AND THAT'S ALSO IF THOSE PROPOSED RULES ACTUALLY STAY PUT AND GO INTO EFFECT, WHICH IS ANYTHING BUT CERTAIN.
UM, SO HEMP MARIJUANA, WE, WE ARE RELATIVELY UNAFFECTED HERE JUST BECAUSE HEMP AND MARIJUANA, THE SMALL CASES ARE NOT, DARE I SAY, A PARTICULAR PRIORITY.
THEY JUST AREN'T WHAT HARRIS COUNTY IS HAS TO PAY ATTENTION TO.
WE, WE NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO VIOLENT CRIME, THOSE TYPES OF THINGS.
IT'S JUST NOT THE SAME ISSUE AS OTHER THINGS.
THE ELSEWHERE IN THE STATE, IT'S MUCH MORE OF AN ISSUE IN COUNTIES THAT DON'T HAVE THE SAME KIND OF OTHER CRIMINAL LOAD, THEY PAY MUCH MORE ATTENTION TO IT.
BUT IT STILL HAS IMPACTS TO US AND I, I JUST CAN'T QUITE PREDICT WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WITH IT.
ALRIGHT, FIREARMS IS GONNA CONTINUE TO BE THE PAIN POINT FOR EVERYBODY.
UM, THIS HAS BEEN THE CASE FOR WHAT, THE LAST FIVE YEARS THAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO GET PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND THIS.
[00:15:01]
I'VE GOTTA POINT OUT WE HAVE, OF THE FIREARMS EXAMINERS THAT WE HAVE, WE BASICALLY HAVE TWO FULL-TIME FIREARMS EXAMINERS BECAUSE THE OTHER THREE ARE BUSY HELPING WITH TRAINING.SO THEY AREN'T FULL-TIME ON CASEWORK.
SO THE FACT THAT WE HAVE KEPT THE BACKLOG OF REQUESTS GROWING AT THE PRETTY SLOW RATE THAT IT HAS ACROSS THE YEAR IS PRETTY MIRACULOUS AND A TESTAMENT TO WHAT THOSE PEOPLE ARE DOING.
AND, BUT I GET THIS IS A CHALLENGE FOR THE REST OF THE SYSTEM.
THIS IS EVIDENCE IN WHAT THE COURTS ARE TRYING TO TRY.
MOST VIOLENT CRIME INVOLVES A GUN IN THERE SOMEPLACE.
SO IT'S EVIDENCE THAT THE COURTS ARE VERY INTERESTED IN.
I ALSO APPRECIATE NOBODY WANTS US DOING A SLIP SAW SHOT JOB ON THIS.
SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON THE QUALITY OF IT IN SPITE OF THE PRESSURES.
IN 26, WE WILL BE RECRUITING AND POSTING FOR FIVE NEW EXAMINERS.
WE HAVE BEEN FINISHING UP WITH THE CONTRACTS AROUND WHAT TRAINING WE CAN OUTSOURCE ON THAT.
UM, WE HAVE TWO EXAMINERS IN TRAINING AND WE WILL BEGIN TRAINING THOSE FIVE MORE.
UM, AND WE WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO USE WHAT LIMITED OUTSOURCING IS POSSIBLE OUT THERE, WHICH IS BASICALLY THE TARRANT COUNTY SITUATION THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO USE.
KEEP IN MIND THEY HAVE TWO EXAMINERS UP THERE.
UH, SO IF ONE OF THEIR EXAMINERS IS DOWN HERE IN HARRIS COUNTY TESTIFYING, THAT MEANS THEY HAVE ONE EXAMINER UP THERE DOING STUFF.
AND EVERYBODY IN THE STATE IS ALSO LOOKING AT TARRANT COUNTY FOR DEALING WITH THEIR BACKLOGS.
AND I'VE SAID THIS ONE BEFORE, THERE ARE A GRAND TOTAL OF 72 FIREARMS EXAMINERS IN THE ENTIRE STATE.
SO THERE IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO BE A LOT OF PRESSURES AROUND FIREARMS. UM, SO THAT MEANS THE RISKS FOR US IS CONTINUING WITH THE FANTASTIC WORK THAT THE DA'S OFFICE, I CAN'T GIVE THEM ENOUGH CREDIT ON THIS, THEY HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY HELPFUL HERE AND HPD AROUND HOW WE ALL DECIDE WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES, HOW DO WE PUT THEM IN ORDER, HOW DO WE BEST TRY AND ADDRESS THINGS TO LIMIT THE IMPACTS IN THE COURTS.
UM, WE KNOW THERE ARE POST-CONVICTION CASES THAT WILL HAVE IMPACTS HERE.
AGAIN, FIREARMS ARE INVOLVED IN MOST CAPITAL CASES.
UM, I THINK WE'VE GOT THREE RIGHT NOW THAT INVOLVE FIREARMS THAT ARE SOME KIND OF POST-CONVICTION THING.
AND THAT INVOLVES A LOT OF TIME OF THESE SAME PEOPLE DOING CURRENT CASE WORK.
THERE WILL BE CONTINUED CRITICISM IN THE FIELD.
THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT REALITY.
UM, TRIED TO PUSH ALONG AS MUCH OF THE PUBLICATIONS AND THE COMMENTARY THAT'S OUT THERE AROUND THIS.
UM, WE HAVE WORKED HARD TO TRY AND KEEP THE MAJOR CRITICS NEAR AT HAND IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT THEY'RE DOING.
I DON'T KNOW IF IT WILL AFFECT US DIRECTLY, BUT IT COULD EASILY SHOW UP ANYWHERE IN THE STATE THAT COULD HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR CASES HERE IN HARRIS COUNTY.
I, BECAUSE OF THAT CRITICISM AND BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE WORK THAT'S BEEN GOING ON AT TEXAS FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMISSION AND ELSEWHERE COULD SEE SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE REQUIREMENTS OF HOW WE PRACTICE, HOW WE REPORT THOSE KINDS OF THINGS THAT COULD HAVE IMPLICATIONS.
AND THEN, LIKE I SAID BEFORE, OUTSOURCING IS EXTREMELY LIMITED IN WHAT WE CAN DO.
QUESTIONS FOR FIREARMS TOXICOLOGY.
UM, WE'VE REALLY MANAGED TO KEEP THE, THE PRIMARY PART THAT THE SYSTEM IS CONCERNED WITH ALCOHOLS.
UH, THAT'S, THAT'S THE MAJOR PART OF THE WORK.
THEY HAVE KEPT THAT AT OR BELOW 30 DAYS EVEN WITH CHANGES IN STAFF TURNOVER.
DRUG TURNAROUND TIMES FLOATING AROUND 280 DAYS, MUCH LONGER THAN WE'D LIKE.
BUT THAT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE DISRUPTIVE TO THE SYSTEM RIGHT NOW.
AND WE CAN USUALLY ADDRESS A COURT PRIORITY WHEN IT'S NEEDED.
UM, WE HAVE VALIDATION WORK THIS NEXT YEAR ON THE NEW QTOF.
UM, THAT'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF WORK THERE.
WE ALSO ARE RE REWORKING SOME OF THE DRUG METHODS TO HAVE MORE AUTOMATION INVOLVED WITH THEM SO THAT ULTIMATELY THEY'RE MORE EFFICIENT.
AND AGAIN, WE'VE GOT TALENT THAT WE'VE HIRED IN THAT'S DONE A LOT OF THIS WORK.
UM, SO I I THINK THERE'S THE, THE PIECES ARE THERE, BUT IT'S GONNA BE A LOT OF WORK ACROSS THE YEAR AND THE TURNOVER, THE TRAINING ASPECTS OF TRAINING NEW PEOPLE.
UM, SO THAT IS PART OF THE RISK IS JUST, YOU KNOW, STAFF TURNOVER.
THAT'S THE SAME RISK WE'VE GOT EVERYWHERE.
WE PUT ALL OF THIS EFFORT INTO TRAINING.
AND THEN IF WE LOSE SOMEBODY TOO SOON, THAT'S A BIG HIT.
UM, OUTSOURCING COSTS ARE GOING UP.
AND I WILL MENTION UNDER OUTSOURCING COSTS 'CAUSE IT'S PROBABLY, WE'RE SEEING THE IMPACTS OF A SUPREME COURT DECISION THIS LAST YEAR.
[00:20:01]
I'VE MENTIONED THIS ONE BEFORE.SMITH V ARIZONA WAS A SUPREME COURT DECISION THIS LAST YEAR.
UM, IT IS ONE IN A LONG LINE OF WHAT ARE CALLED THE PROGENY OF MELINDA DIAZ.
THEY'RE SIXTH AMENDMENT RIGHT TO FACE YOUR ACCUSER KINDS OF CASES.
NOT A LAWYER, DEFINITELY NOT A CONSTITUTIONAL LAWYER.
I JUST HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS STUFF.
UH, BUT BASICALLY IT AFFECTS THE DEMAND FOR WHO HAS TO TESTIFY ABOUT WHAT.
AND FOR FORENSIC LABORATORIES, PARTICULARLY IN TOXICOLOGY AND DNA, THE PROCESSES IN COMMERCIAL LABORATORIES IN PARTICULAR ARE THIS KIND OF ASSEMBLY LINE KIND OF PROCESS.
SO WHAT THAT THEN CAN, AND, AND THE COMMERCIAL LABORATORIES HAVE MORE EXPOSURE TO THIS THAN NECESSARILY LABS IN TEXAS.
WE HAVEN'T SEEN A WHOLE LOT OF IMPACTS DIRECTLY IN TEXAS YET FROM ARIZONA V SMITH.
BUT COMMERCIAL LABORATORIES THAT HAVE WORK IN OTHER JURISDICTIONS IN THE COUNTRY, UH, PARTICULARLY CONNECTICUT, UM, THEY ARE SEEING CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE THEY ARE GETTING DOZENS OF THEIR ANALYSTS SUBPOENAED TO TESTIFY IN COURT.
AND THAT'S INCREASING THEIR COSTS.
SO I DON'T KNOW HOW IT'S GONNA UNFOLD.
UH, WHEN MELINDA DIAZ WAS DECIDED, WHAT, 15 YEARS AGO, WE WENT THROUGH AN EPISODE WHERE THERE WAS SOME PRETTY SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN TESTIMONY DEMAND ON LABORATORIES, AND IT KIND OF SETTLED DOWN.
IT'S TOUGH TO SAY WITH THIS 'CAUSE ARIZONA V SMITH MAKES IT EVEN THAT MUCH MORE STRIDENT ABOUT WHO HAS TO TESTIFY ABOUT WHAT.
AND SOME JURISDICTIONS AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE TAKING IT KIND OF TO AN EXTREME.
UM, WHAT WE SEE OUT OF IT IS AN INCREASE IN OUR OUTSOURCING COSTS.
UH, Q UTAH VALIDATION, LABOR COST INCREASES.
UM, YES, ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE RISKS IN 2026.
IT'S, IT'S REALLY DIFFICULT FOR ALL OF US TO PREDICT WHAT ARIZONA B SMITH IS GONNA DO, BUT IT'S GONNA DO SOMETHING DIGITAL, MULTIMEDIA, NO BACKLOGS.
UH, WE'VE INCREASED OUR INFOTAINMENT ANALYSIS CAPACITY.
UM, AND BECAUSE OF THOSE INCREASES WE NOW HAVE WORK TO DO WITH BOTH HPD AND H-C-D-A-O, THE DA'S OFFICE, UH, HELPING THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT WE CAN DO AND WHERE THE CAPACITY IS.
SO, UM, WE'VE, WE'VE HAD A NUMBER OF OUTREACH EFFORTS IN THERE TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY CAN REQUEST.
PROBABLY SHOULD BE REQUESTING HOW TO HELP INVESTIGATORS KEEP THAT FRONT OF MIND.
UM, PROBABLY THE BIGGEST RISKS TO US HERE IN 26 ARE RISING COSTS OF DATA STORAGE AND SOFTWARE COSTS.
WE'RE SEEING SOME PRETTY SHARP INCREASES IN THE SOFTWARE PACKAGES THAT WE USE THERE.
THEY'RE ALREADY KINDA WILDLY EXPENSIVE AND THEY'RE GETTING EVEN WILDLY MORE WILDLY EXPENSIVE.
UM, AND SO THERE IS AN ONGOING DISCUSSION OF THIS, OF A LOT OF THE SOFTWARE PRODUCERS ALSO LIKE TO MARKET THE PUSH BUTTON SOLUTIONS AND THE THINGS THAT ANY ANYBODY CAN DO KIND OF STUFF.
AND THERE'S A REAL BALANCE IN THAT OF WHAT IS BEST DONE IN MOST COST, EFFECTIVELY DONE BY AN INVESTIGATOR AT THE FRONT END, WHAT IS BEST DONE AND MOST APPROPRIATELY HANDLED IN THE LABORATORY.
AND I THINK WE'RE GONNA SEE A LOT OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS OVER THIS YEAR AND HOW TO BALANCE THAT MULTIMEDIA QUESTIONS.
UH, HOW LONG IS EVERYTHING STORED
UM, IT'S JUST NOT PRACTICAL BECAUSE MY ESTIMATE IS WE PROBABLY GENERATE ON A YEARLY BASIS WELL INTO THE 3, 4, 5 PETABYTE KIND OF RANGE.
UM, LARGELY WHAT WE DO IS WE BACK STUFF OFF ONTO EXTERNAL MEDIA AS A FORENSIC COPY, AND THEN THAT GETS TAGGED BACK INTO THE PROPERTY ROOM AS KIND OF THE, THE ORIGINAL.
UM, WE HAVE WORKING COPIES OF THINGS THAT WE STORE, AMY, WHAT IS IT, 60 DAYS OR 90 DAYS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
IT'S KINDA IN THAT RANGE, UM, ON LOCAL STORAGE.
UH, BUT WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS AND THERE IS ONGOING CONVERSATIONS, PARTICULARLY WITH HPD ABOUT WHERE AND HOW DO WE HAVE SHARED STORAGE THAT INVESTIGATORS CAN GET AT, THAT WE CAN GET AT.
UM, THERE, WE HAVE HAD CONVERSATIONS OVER THE YEARS AS WELL, HOW TO HANDLE SOME OF THIS STUFF BECAUSE CLOUD SYSTEMS, I, I KNOW THERE HAVE BEEN SOME PROBABLY REALLY ENTERTAINING CONVERSATIONS WITHIN MICROSOFT OF, EVEN IF IT'S ALL ENCRYPTED AND THEY DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE ANY MEANS OF GETTING AT IT, THEY STILL
[00:25:01]
REALLY DON'T WANT THE CHILD PORNOGRAPHY ON THEIR SYSTEMS. UM, I CAN'T BLAME THEM.UH, SO THERE'S ADDITIONAL COMPLEXITIES IN THAT, BUT THE, THE SCALE OF STORAGE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS MANY MULTIPLE PETABYTES AND IT GETS EXPENSIVE ANY WAY WE DO IT.
DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? YEAH.
PETER, WHAT DOES EXPENSIVE MEAN? GIVE US A A RANGE.
I THINK YOUR ANSWER IS REALLY GOOD.
OH, IT CAN IT EASILY RUN UP INTO THE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TERMS IF WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO STORE, IF WE WERE TRYING TO STORE PETABYTES OF MATERIAL OVER LONG, THAT'S, THAT'S MILLIONS.
WHAT'S A PETABYTE, UH, PETABYTE? SO YOU HAVE, UM, GIGABYTES AND TERABYTES.
A PETABYTE IS A THOUSAND TERABYTES.
AND WE GENERATE EASILY, I MEAN, I MEAN I PROBABLY HAVE CLOSE TO A TERABYTE OF STORAGE SITTING ON ME JUST RIGHT NOW.
SO IMAGINE NOW NOT ONLY AM I MAKING A FORENSIC COPY OF THAT TERABYTE OF INFORMATION DIRECTLY, I'VE GOT WORKING COPIES OF IT.
SO I MAY HAVE MULTIPLE DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF IT.
SO IF YOU WERE PROCESSING JUST WHAT I'VE GOT SITTING HERE, THAT COULD EASILY BE SEVERAL TERABYTES ON JUST ONE INDIVIDUAL IN ONE CASE.
HOW, HOW LONG IDEALLY WOULD YOU LIKE TO KEEP STORAGE? YEAH.
ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE TO GO BACK TO IT POTENTIALLY.
WELL, IDEALLY WE WOULD KEEP IT FOR YEARS, RIGHT? UM, IT'S JUST NOT REALISTIC.
AND SO EVERYTHING WE'RE DEALING WITH, I MEAN THE, THE BACKING STUFF OFF ONTO EXTERNAL MEDIA IS IMPERFECT AS WELL BECAUSE EXTERNAL MEDIA HAS AN AGE LIMIT.
I MEAN, ANY KIND OF EXTERNAL MEDIA THAT WE'RE USING AGES AND ULTIMATELY DECAYS.
SO ALL OF THAT, IT'S, IT'S A RISKY, IMPERFECT WAY OF DEALING WITH IT AS IT IS.
BUT YEAH, WE, WE BUY TERABYTE EXTERNAL MEDIA BY THE CASE.
SO WHAT, WHAT IS THE POLICY OF THE LAB FOR HOW LONG YOU'RE GONNA MAINTAIN DIFFERENT? SO, SO LIKE I SAY, WHAT WE, WHAT WE DO IS WE BACK STUFF OFF ONTO THAT EXTERNAL AND THAT BECOMES THE, THE RAW EVIDENCE AND IT'S RETAINED INDEFINITELY AT THE PROPERTY ROOM.
THE, THE WORKING COPIES OF THINGS THAT WE HAVE WORKED THROUGH TO PROCESS, HAVE DONE, TRANSFORM THROUGH THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.
THAT'S WHERE THE REAL CONVERSATION IS OF HOW LONG AND HOW DO WE STORE THAT STUFF.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE SAY WE STORE LOCALLY BASICALLY, AS LONG AS THE INVESTIGATION'S GOING ON.
BUT IT GETS REALLY DIFFICULT TO STORE THAT STUFF PAST ABOUT 90 DAYS.
AND SO, I MEAN, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE DIFFERENT, YOU'LL HAVE MISDEMEANOR CASES WHERE YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT POST-CONVICTION REMEDIES.
AND SO IS THERE ANY POLICY YOU HAVE IN PLACE TO DISTINGUISH EVIDENCE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO STORE FROM, FOR EXAMPLE, WE MISDEMEANOR CASE WE TRY TO MURDER TO CAPITAL MURDER.
YEAH, WE TRY TO, BUT IT, IT GETS REAL.
AND THEN YOU ALSO THINKING, THIS IS WHERE WE START GETTING INTO THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT HAS AN INVESTIGATOR PULLED OFF.
IT GETS REALLY, REALLY COMPLICATED REALLY, REALLY FAST.
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU HAVE AN INVESTIGATOR THAT HAS GONE AND LIKE LAW ENFORCEMENT, LIKE LAW ENFORCEMENT OR AN INVESTIGATOR IN THE DA'S OFFICE, THEY'VE GONE, THEY HAVE DONE AN INITIAL DUMP.
WELL THIS IS ALL VOLATILE MEMORY, SO ANYTIME YOU TOUCH IT, IT CHANGES.
SO THEY'VE ALREADY DONE A DUMP.
SO IF WE GO DO ANOTHER DUMP, IT'S NOT THE SAME DUMP.
AND WHICH DUMPERS ANYBODY ACTUALLY WORKING ON WHICH DUMP IS ACTUALLY RETAINED, WHO'S RETAINING IT? HOW DOES IT CHANGE? SO LIKE ON, OKAY, AGAIN, TOXICOLOGISTS NOT A MULTIMEDIA GUY, BUT LIKE ON THIS MM-HMM
IT, THE, THE MEMORY THAT'S ON THIS, IT'S NOT LIKE THERE'S A PHYSICAL DISC THAT STUFF'S STORED ON MM-HMM
SO YOU CAN THINK OF IT THAT THINGS ON THIS ARE ALWAYS MOVING AROUND ALL THE TIME.
AND ANYTIME EVEN JUST SIMPLY HAVING MY SCREEN COME ON HAS CHANGED THE INFORMATION THAT IS BEING STORED IN THE, THE, THE MEMORY OF THIS DEVICE.
SO IF I GO IN AND NOW DO A EXTRACTION OF THAT INFORMATION, THE SIMPLE ACT OF DOING THE EXTRACTION HAS CHANGED THE INFORMATION THAT'S IN THERE AS FAR AS JUST STORAGE.
[00:30:01]
HAS CHANGED.AND SO FROM THE STANDPOINT OF THE EVIDENTIARY VALUE STUFF, THERE'S, THERE'S A DISCUSSION TO BE HAD AROUND HOW MATERIAL IS THAT.
IT DOESN'T SEEM SEEM LIKE A PROBLEM IF WE MISSED, RIGHT? RIGHT.
BUT THOSE, THOSE ARE THE THINGS WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT WITH IT AND IT MAKES AN IMPACT OF HOW WE DEAL WITH STUFF.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THIS? WOW, I DIDN'T THINK MULTIMEDIA WAS GONNA BE THE PLACE WHERE ALL THE QUESTIONS WERE LATENT PRINTS.
THEY HAVE HELD STEADY FOR THE LAST YEAR, BOTH IN PROCESSING, IN COMPARISON, UM, YOU KNOW, LATENT PRINTS.
THERE'S CAPACITY THERE, THERE AFTER HAVING HAD A GIGANTIC BACKLOG FOR A LOT OF YEARS, IT'S BEEN KIND OF NICE TO SEE LATENT PRINTS BE, BE STEADY.
AND I THINK THROUGH THIS NEXT YEAR, WHAT WE'LL SEE IS CONTINUED, UM, NO BACKLOG THERE.
AGAIN, THE, THE IRONY, ONCE WE GET RID OF A BACKLOG, THEN WE SEEM TO HAVE TO GO AROUND EDUCATING PEOPLE THAT HEY, WE'VE GOT CAPACITY OVER HERE AND YOU NEED TO MAKE REQUESTS.
UM, SEEMS LIKE WE'RE KIND OF IN THAT PERIOD OF, UH, NEEDING TO REEDUCATE, UH, INVESTIGATORS OF THERE IS CAPACITY HERE AND YOU, YOU CAN ASK FOR STUFF.
SO APHIS IS THE AUTOMATED FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM.
I WISH IT WERE A SINGLE SYSTEM THAT WORKED SEAMLESSLY THROUGH ALL OF ITS VARIOUS LAYERS.
UH, AND THERE ARE CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED AT THE STATE LEVEL.
THERE ARE CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED AT THE COUNTY LEVEL THAT HAVE AFFECTED HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS AND HOW WELL IT WORKS.
UM, SO WE'LL SEE HOW THAT ALL SHAKES OUT.
UH, INTEROPERABILITY, THE, THE USED TO BE, EH, 20 YEARS AGO, THE, THE GIGANTIC JOKE IN ALL FORENSICS WAS IF I DID A BURGLARY IN MANHATTAN AND I SCOOTED ACROSS THE RIVER TO NEW JERSEY, NOBODY WOULD EVER KNOW BECAUSE ACROSS THE RIVER, THE FINGERPRINT SYSTEMS DIDN'T COMMUNICATE.
UM, SO THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF WORK IN THE LAST 20 YEARS ABOUT THE INTEROPERABILITY OF VARIOUS LEVELS OF THE APHIS SYSTEM, BUT IT STILL IS GOT A LOT OF SILOED DATA WITHIN THE SYSTEM.
AND THERE ARE SYSTEM UPDATES, SYSTEM SOFTWARE, SYSTEM HARDWARE THAT'S SPECIFIC TO VARIOUS LEVELS AND CAN CREATE SOME REAL HEADACHES FOR US IN TERMS OF HOW THOSE SYSTEMS WORK.
AND WE GOT SOME OF THOSE GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
QUESTIONS ABOUT LATENT PRINTS? ALRIGHT, CRIME SCENE AGAIN, ANOTHER SECTION THAT AFTER LOTS OF HEADACHES OVER THE YEARS, UM, THEY'VE BEEN KEEPING UP PRETTY WELL.
UH, WE'RE CURRENT ON SCENES AND ON VEHICLES.
THEY SEEM TO BE KEEPING UP WITH THAT FAIRLY WELL.
NOW THAT SAID, BEAR IN MIND IT IS A SMALL UNIT THAT IS WAY TOO SMALL.
AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS FOR YEARS.
IT IS WAY TOO SMALL FOR REALLY WHAT THE NEED IS HERE.
BUT FOR THE SCENES THAT WE SEEM TO KIND OF HAVE A STEADY STATE WITH HPD ABOUT WHAT WE NEED TO MAKE, HOMICIDES, CHILD DEATHS, OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTINGS, WE DO.
UM, NOW I THINK ACROSS THIS NEXT YEAR WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CHANGE THERE WITH CORINA'S DEPARTURE.
WE'VE RESTRUCTURED THE MANAGEMENT, WE'VE GOT A NEW MANAGEMENT TEAM.
THEY'RE SETTLING IN NICELY, REALLY ENCOURAGED BY IT, BUT IT'S A LOT OF CHANGE FOR THE GROUP.
UM, WE HAVE SEVEN CSIS CURRENTLY IN TRAINING, BUT THAT'S A LOT OF THE GROUP THAT'S IN TRAINING.
UM, WE'VE GOT CONTINUED TRANSITION OF THIS MANAGEMENT TEAM ACROSS THIS NEXT YEAR ON THE GOOD NEWS SIDE OF THINGS.
AND IT'S NOT THAT PAST PERFORMANCE IS ANY INDICATOR OF WHAT THE FUTURE IS, BUT 2025 ACROSS THE NATION, HOMICIDE NUMBERS WENT DOWN.
SO THEY'VE GOT A LITTLE BIT OF A BREATHER RIGHT NOW.
UH, THAT TREND HAS BEEN THERE FOR THE LAST COUPLE YEARS.
A HOMICIDE'S DECREASING NATIONWIDE.
UM, SO MAYBE WITH A LITTLE LUCK THEY'LL STAY THAT WAY AND THEY MIGHT GET A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A BREATHER.
UM, RISKS, IT'S A LOT OF CHANGE HERE RECENTLY FOR THE GROUP.
UM, THAT'S JUST GONNA TAKE 'EM TIME TO ABSORB THAT.
LIKE I SAY, I'M REALLY ENCOURAGED ABOUT THE NEW MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE, BUT IT'S GONNA TAKE TIME, LABOR COSTS AND TURNOVER.
TYPICAL RISKS THAT WE'VE GOT EVERYWHERE.
AND, YOU KNOW, I'VE HIT THAT A FEW TIMES.
LABOR COSTS, AND THIS IS A NATIONWIDE THING.
LABOR COSTS ARE INCREASING, UH, INCLUDED ON HERE ABOUT THE PROPERTY STUFF.
SINCE WE'VE GOT THAT RIGHT AT THE END HERE.
UH, WE HAVE COMPLETED THAT CONSTRUCTION.
WE'VE BEGUN MOVING STUFF OVER.
UH, THIS IS A LONG SERIES OF BASICALLY MUSICAL CHAIRS THAT ARE NECESSARY TO ULTIMATELY SOLVE SOME OF THE SERIOUS ISSUES THAT ARE IN PROPERTY WR LARGE.
WE HAVE BASICALLY GOTTEN THE FIRST STEP IN THAT DONE
[00:35:01]
AND THE TRANSITION TEAM IS STARTING TO MOVE ON TO THE NEXT.SO THAT NEXT BIG STEP IS AN INVENTORY OF THE SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS THAT ARE CURRENTLY IN INVENTORY.
I THINK IT'S SOMETHING IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF ABOUT 40,000 KITS.
UH, WE WILL BE ACROSS THIS NEXT CALENDAR YEAR, LOOKING TO MOVE THOSE SEXUAL ASSAULT KITS, BEGIN TO MOVE THE FROZEN STORAGE.
AND WITH A BIT OF LUCK FINALIZING WHAT REALLY THESE TRANSITION PLANS LOOK LIKE BETWEEN THE CITY, US AND HPD.
UM, SO I WOULD SAY THE BIGGEST RISKS IN PROPERTY ARE WE GET STUCK IN FIGURING OUT WHAT THE TRANSITION REALLY LOOKS LIKE.
UM, IT JUST, JUST CAN'T, YOU KNOW, WE LOSE THE MOMENTUM AND WE KIND OF CAN'T GET THE TRANSITION THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN.
HOPEFULLY WE CAN MITIGATE THAT ONE.
LABOR COSTS LIKE EVERYWHERE ELSE.
AND THEN WE, YOU KNOW, WE LOOK HARD TRYING TO FIND WHERE UNEXPECTED COSTS MAY BE, BUT IF THERE IS AN UNEXPECTED CAPITAL COST THAT COMES FROM SOME FACILITY CHANGE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT THAT LURKS OUT THERE AS A RISK, UM, LOOKS LIKE ALREADY GOT.
SO ALL THOSE BALES OF MARIJUANA DRUGS, THE HEMP AND OTHER FLAMMABLE STUFF THAT THE RATS LIKE
WHAT, WHAT'S THE SITUATION WITH THAT
'CAUSE THAT'S ULTIMATELY WHERE WE WANT THOSE DRUGS TO GO.
UH, BUT THAT MEANS SEVERAL STAGES OF CLEARING OUT THE SPACE, MAKING THE CONSTRUCTION CHANGES THAT ARE NECESSARY TO HANDLE THOSE HAZARDS OVER THERE.
ALL THE WHILE, WHILE STILL WORKING WITH THE REST OF THE SYSTEM, THE COURTS AND THE DA'S OFFICE ABOUT HOW WE DISPOSE OF DRUGS.
UM, NOW ACTUALLY LAST NIGHT I GOT A LITTLE BIT OF GOOD NEWS, UH, FROM REPRESENTATIVE LUC FLETCHER'S OFFICE THAT I HAD MADE, UH, A PROPOSAL TO THEM ON DEALING WITH SOME OF THE DRUG ASPECTS.
UH, 'CAUSE WE HAVE A LARGE SET OF CASES THAT HAVE KIND OF BEEN HUNG IN THE SYSTEM.
AND WE'VE ACTUALLY BEEN DEALING WITH THESE FOR A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN A DECADE.
UM, THEY'RE OLD CASES THAT HAD FIELD TESTS DONE ON THEM, BUT HAD NEVER HAD A LABORATORY TEST DONE ON 'EM.
SO THE CONCERN IS, WITHOUT THAT LABORATORY TEST, HOW MANY OF THOSE CASES WEREN'T DRUGS? UM, THEY WERE FALSE, FALSE POSITIVES.
SO SOMEBODY TOOK A PLEA AGREEMENT ON SOMETHING THAT WASN'T DRUGS AND HOW DO WE ADDRESS THAT? IT'S A LOT OF CASES, IT IS WAY MORE THAN ANYBODY HAS THE RESOURCES TO TEST DIRECTLY.
IT WOULD BE TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO TRY AND TEST THEM DIRECTLY.
SO WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO THINK OF SMARTER, MORE EFFECTIVE WAYS TO DEAL WITH THOSE.
AND THIS WAS PART OF WHAT I PROPOSED TO LIZZIE FLETCHER'S OFFICE AND LAST NIGHT THEY LET ME KNOW THAT IT HAD AT LEAST MADE IT OUT OF THE HOUSE.
UH, IT'S NOW OVER TO THE SENATE WITH MAYBE SOME LUCK OF ACTUALLY BEING FUNDED.
UH, SO THAT WOULD BE SOME RESOURCES TO TRY AND THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS A LITTLE SMARTER, UH, TO DEAL WITH THAT PARTICULAR ASPECT.
SO WOULD THAT BE FOR TESTING OR DISPOSAL? UM, WELL ULTIMATELY IT'S TO BE ABLE TO DISPOSE OF THEM.
UM, VERY RIGHTLY SO, THE DA'S OFFICE IS CONCERNED.
WE DON'T WANNA DISPOSE OF THOSE MATERIALS UNTIL WE KIND OF HAVE A CLEAR WAY OF UNDERSTANDING WHOSE DRUGS REALLY WEREN'T DRUGS.
UM, SO WE KIND OF NEED A BETTER WAY OF FINDING THAT BEFORE WE AUTHORIZE DESTRUCTION.
SO IT ALL KINDA LEADS TO HOW DO WE DE DISPOSE OF THESE THINGS MORE EFFECTIVELY.
SO FROM THE
UM, IF YOU HISTORY, HISTORY LESSON HERE, AND I KNOW I DON'T, NOT TO BE TOO LONG ON TIME HERE BACK AND THERE, THERE'S, UH, THERE'S A SERIES.
IF YOU GOOGLE PROPUBLICA AND BUSTED, AND WE CAN FIND YOU THE LINKS TO THESE.
THERE'S, THERE'S A SERIES OF ARTICLES IN PROPUBLICA.
UM, AND THERE'S ACTUALLY A NUMBER OF ARTICLES AROUND ABOUT THIS.
THERE WAS, UH, A PERIOD IN TIME THERE WHERE, UM, SHOULD HAVE JAMES COME EXPLAIN THIS.
'CAUSE JAMES WAS A HUGE PART OF THIS, UM, UM, CASES THAT HAD HAD A FIELD TEST.
SO THE LITTLE, THE LITTLE NICK KIT KIND OF THING.
UM, SOMEBODY TOOK A PLEA AGREEMENT ON THOSE AND WE HAD CONTINUED
[00:40:01]
TO TEST THE MATERIALS AFTER THAT.THIS IS GOING BACK TO LIKE 2010 TO 2014, THAT KIND OF, THAT KIND OF TIME RANGE.
AND WE STARTED TO SEE A DISTURBING NUMBER OF CASES THAT WERE COMING BACK NEGATIVE, NO ACTUAL CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE.
THERE IS A FALSE POSITIVE RATE ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE FIELD TESTS.
UM, MUCH TO THE CREDIT OF THE DA'S OFFICE AND TO THE LABORATORY.
AND THERE WERE ABOUT 300 EXONERATIONS THAT HAPPENED IN THAT TIMEFRAME BASED OFF OF THE TESTING THAT WAS THERE.
THE FACT THAT THE DA'S OFFICE REALIZED THIS ISN'T RIGHT.
SO THEY WENT AND ACTUALLY OPENED THOSE CASES BACK UP, DEALT WITH AN EXONERATION OF SOMEBODY THAT WAS CHARGED, HAD TAKEN A PLEA AGREEMENT WHEN THERE WEREN'T ACTUALLY DRUGS THAT GAVE RISE TO WHAT'S CALLED THE NO LAB, NO PLEA POLICY THAT'S BEEN IN PLACE FOR THE LAST CLOSE TO 15 YEARS WHERE THE DA'S OFFICE WON'T EVEN CONSIDER A PLEA AGREEMENT UNTIL THERE'S, UNTIL THERE'S A LABORATORY BASED TEST.
AND SINCE THAT POINT IT'S NOT BEEN AN ISSUE.
AND IN ABOUT 2019, LARGELY FIELD TESTING IN HARRIS COUNTY STOPPED ALTOGETHER.
UM, BUT IF WE LOOK BACK AT CASES BEFORE, THERE ARE CASES WHERE PEOPLE HAVE TAKEN PLEAS THAT THERE WAS NEVER A LABORATORY TEST.
SO WHAT DO WE DO WITH THOSE CASES? THAT'S THE PART THAT WE NEED A SOLUTION TO.
IT'S JUST NOT PRACTICAL TO, TO HAVE THAT POLICY, IN MY OPINION THAT PEOPLE PLEAD WITHOUT LAB TESTS.
'CAUSE IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME.
YOU, IF SOMEBODY, THE REALITY OF THE SYSTEM IS, AND I'VE BEEN HANDLING CASES IN THE COUNTY FOR 27 YEARS, IS THAT YOU'LL HAVE SOMEBODY THAT MAYBE IS A HABITUAL OFFENDER, YOU KNOW, FACING LIFE IN PRISON AND THEY SHOW UP ON DAY ONE IN COURT AND IT'S, UH, LESS THAN A GRAM OF COCAINE CASE.
AND THE STATE OFFERS THEM, YOU KNOW, 60 DAYS IN THE HARRIS COUNTY JAIL REDUCED UNDER 4 44 A AND IT'S, IT'S THE ACCUSED PERSONS RIGHT TO, TO PLEAD WITHOUT A LAB TEST, WITHOUT AN INDICTMENT.
AND, UM, AND THAT'S A LOT OF TIMES WHAT THOSE PEOPLE WANT TO DO.
AND I JUST DON'T THINK IT'S A GOOD POLICY WHERE YOU HAVE SOMEBODY IN THAT POSITION, AN ACCUSED PERSON, YOU'RE LIKE, WELL WE CAN'T DO THAT UNTIL WE GET THE LAB BACK.
IT'S KIND OF AFFECTS A PERSON'S, UH, SIXTH AMENDMENT.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE REALLY COMPLICATED THINGS AND IT'S THEIR RIGHT IF THEY WANNA PLEAD, IF THEY WANNA PLEAD GUILTY, IT'S THEIR, RIGHT NOW, IF THE LAB TESTS IT, THEN THE DA'S OFFICE IS GONNA SEND YOU A BRADY NOTICE AND THEN YOUR OBLIGATION IS THE ATTORNEY IS TO REACH OUT TO THE PERSON AND SAY, HEY, BY THE WAY, AND YOU KNOW WHAT, SOMETIMES YOU'LL HAVE PEOPLE YOU'LL NEVER HEAR FROM, OTHER TIMES THEY'LL COME RUNNING IN, BUT THAT'S JUST, THAT'S THE REALITY OF THE SYSTEM.
OTHER QUESTIONS? ALRIGHT, THAT'S WHAT I HAD.
ALRIGHT, WE'LL PROCEED TO AGENDA ITEM SEVEN, REPORT FROM JACK MORALE.
IS THERE A QUALITY DIRECTOR INCLUDING AN OVERVIEW OF THE UPDATES ON QUALITY TESTIMONY METRICS?
UH, MY REPORT IS GONNA BE SHORT THIS TIME AROUND.
I DON'T HAVE MANY UPDATES, WHICH IS A GOOD THING.
SO MY FIRST TOPIC FOR TODAY, CAN YOU PRESS NEXT
UH, THE LAST BOARD MEETING I MENTIONED THAT WE WERE, WE WERE PREPARED AND READY FOR OUR CSEM EVIDENCE, PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE ACCREDITATION.
WE HAD A REASSESSMENT AND, UH, WELL THAT HAPPENED LAST YEAR IN DECEMBER.
WE HAD A REASSESSMENT COMPLETED DURING THE, UH, DURING DECEMBER 10TH.
THIS AUDIT WAS PRETTY ENCOMPASSING BECAUSE IT FOCUSED ON ALL OF THE ACCREDITATION REQUIREMENTS FOR THE 31 81 ACCREDITATION PROGRAM.
SO WE HAD TO SHOW CONFORMANCE AND RECORDS AND, UH, THIS, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS ONE DAY WE HAD TO DO, WE HAD TO GO TO THE PROPERTY ROOM SO THE ASSESSORS COULD WITNESS EVIDENCE, TRANSACTIONS.
UH, WE HAD TO DO AUDITS FROM THE DIFFERENT EVIDENCE VAULTS THAT WE HAD.
SO IT WAS VERY IMMERSIVE, BUT WE WERE ABLE TO FINALIZE IT AND COMPLETE IT ON THAT DAY.
[00:45:01]
UH, WE JUST GOT WORD, THERE WAS NO NONCONFORMANCES NOTED AND WE JUST GOT OUR CERTIFICATE AND SCOPE EMAILED LAST WEEK THAT MADE IT OFFICIAL.SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT A NAB DOES IS ONCE THE LEAD ASSESSOR COMPLETES THEIR ASSESSMENT, THEY HAVE ANOTHER ACCREDITATION MANAGER LOOK OVER THE REPORT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING IS CONFIRMED.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOTHING MISSING BEFORE THEY LET US KNOW.
LIKE OFFICIALLY THAT YES, FOR SURE YOUR ACCREDITATION IS, UM, IS, IS GIVEN AND YOU, YOU CAN CONTINUE YOUR RE UM, YOUR ACCREDITATION CYCLE.
SO THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAD TO KINDA WAIT, BUT NOW IT'S OFFICIAL FOR ME TO TELL YOU.
UM, SO WE ARE UPDATING THAT ON THE WEBSITE AND WHATNOT.
AND SO WE JUST WANTED TO UPDATE YOU ON, ON THE GOOD NEWS.
SO WE'RE THIS ACCREDITATION, UM, CYCLE IS FOR TWO YEARS, SO WE WILL JUST, UM, IT'S A CONTINUAL, CAN YOU MOVE ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE? THANK YOU,
UH, SO MY LAST TOPIC IS JUST KIND OF GIVING YOU AN OVERVIEW OF TESTIMONY DATA.
I KNOW THAT DR. STOUT TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT I ARIZONA AND SMITH AND YOU KNOW, THE IMPLICATIONS OF TESTIMONY AND WHATNOT.
UH, TESTIMONY IS ONE OF THE IMPORTANT SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE TO OUR STAKEHOLDERS.
THIS IS SORT OF, UM, JOINED TO PUT THE ANALYSIS OF OUR CASE WORK.
SO I JUST KIND WANNA GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF, YOU KNOW, THE OUTPUTS OF THE TIME THAT WARRANTS FOR THIS TYPE OF SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE.
AS YOU CAN SEE, FOR 2025, WE HAD A TOTAL OF 977 HOURS, UM, DEDICATED FOR THIS SERVICE.
AS YOU CAN SEE, 793 OF THOSE WERE JUST WAITING, YOU KNOW, PRIOR TO THE TESTIMONY.
AND THE ACTUAL TESTIMONY WAS A HUNDRED, I THINK IN 84.
IT'S A BIT BIT SMALL FROM HERE.
UM, AND THEN I ALSO, I'M DEPICTING IN THE PIE CHART NEXT TO IT, THE KIND OF THE, UM, HOW THIS WAS BROKEN DOWN BY SECTION.
AND THIS IS SPECIFIC TO THE WAITING HOURS, RIGHT? IF IN MY NEXT SLIDE I WANTED TO GIVE YOU ANOTHER OVERVIEW OF THE TESTIMONY MONITORING DATA.
SO IN LATE 2024, WE STARTED TRACKING THE TIME THAT IT TAKES FOR, UH, MONITORS TO GO AND EVALUATE THE TESTIMONY OF THE ANALYSTS TO GO AND TESTIFY.
OUR HFSE REQUIREMENT IS EVERY ANNUAL YEAR, UM, EVERY ANALYST THAT GOES AND TESTIFIES NEEDS TO BE MONITORED BY SOMEBODY FROM THEIR SECTION THAT IS TECHNICALLY COMPETENT AS WELL AS THEY ARE.
UH, THEY NEED TO BE EVALUATED AT LEAST ONCE PER YEAR.
THERE ARE OTHER SECTIONS WHO ARE MORE STRINGENT AND THEY REQUIRE MONITORS TO GO IN EVERY TESTIMONY OR WHATNOT, BUT THE QUALITY MANUAL REQUIREMENT IS AT LEAST ONCE YOUR TESTIMONY PER YEAR.
AND SO NOW THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO COLLECT THE DATA, I CAN PRESENT IT FOR 2025.
SO WHAT I MENTIONED IS THE 977 HOURS ARE THE ANALYSTS THEMSELVES TESTIFYING FOR THE CASE.
BUT IN ADDITION, THE INSTANCES WHERE A MONITOR HAD TO GO TO COURT AND MONITOR, THAT WAS AN ADDITIONAL 256 HOURS.
AND I BROKE IT DOWN BY SECTION, UH, FOR YOUR, WERE TO SEE HOW THIS, YOU KNOW, HOW THIS, UM, HOW, HOW THE BREAKDOWN IS BY SECTION FOR THIS MONITOR'S TIME NOW FOR THE END OF 2025, THIS WAS REALLY GOOD.
WE ACTUALLY ENDED UP WITH 95% OF THE STAFF THAT TESTIFIED IN 2025 BEING MONITORED.
UH, WE ONLY HAD FOUR PEOPLE, BUT WE ALREADY REQUESTED THOSE TRANSCRIPTS.
SO THIS IS A REALLY GOOD NUMBER, BUT IT'S JUST TO SHOW HOW, YOU KNOW, WE DO MONITOR THIS OUTPUT OR YOU KNOW, OR SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE.
UM, IT'S AN ADDITIONAL MECHANISM THAT WE DO.
AND THEN FOR MY LAST SLIDE, THIS IS JUST A BREAKDOWN TO KIND OF GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THIS, THE TESTIMONY TIME OVER THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.
AS YOU CAN SEE WE'RE KIND OF ALMOST THERE WITH 2023 AND 2023.
WE HAD 977 HOURS, NO, 997 HOURS VERSUS 977 FOR THIS YEAR.
SO WE'RE 20 HOURS A LITTLE BIT BELOW, BUT IT'S SORT OF LIKE A CALIBRATING NOW, UM, FROM LAST 2024 TO JUST KIND OF PREDICT THAT.
UM, AND WITH THAT, THAT'S MY LAST TOPIC.
SHORT AND SWEET IS ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? NO.
NO OTHER QUESTIONS IN THAT CASE? WE ARE CALLING FOR A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
ALL OPPOSED? WE ARE ADJOURNED.