The Metro Forensic Laboratory is housed in the Police Operations Center located at 705 South Nevada in Colorado Springs. At the present time, the laboratory consists of one Laboratory Supervisor, one Administrative Technician, three Forensic Chemists, one Criminalist, and five Crime Scene Technicians. The Criminalist and one of the Forensic Chemists are employees of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
The Metro Lab offers a number of forensic services to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, the Colorado Springs Police Department, and the District Attorney’s Office. Among these services are drug and alcohol analysis, to include the examination of all controlled substances; major crime scene processing and documentation; bloodstain pattern analysis and crime scene reconstruction; latent print processing and identification, to include entry of unknown latent impressions into the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS); and footwear and tire impression analysis.
The lab recently acquired several new pieces of forensic equipment which will assist personnel in both the chemistry section and the criminalistics section of the laboratory.
- Three Reflective Ultraviolet Imaging System (RUVIS) scopes which can be used both in the laboratory and in the field to detect and record latent prints on nonporous surfaces
- Latent print comparison software that allows the digital enhancement of latent prints to facilitate the matching of fingerprints that may previously have been of insufficient detail for identification purposes
- A video-based fingerprint comparator to increase the efficiency of latent print examinations
- MP4 digital camera which allows the capture and storage of digital images of latent prints and other forensic evidence for later examination.
- A new Gas Chromatograph/FID to improve efficiency for blood alcohol analysis
- An Endurance Diamond/ATR attachment for the Infrared Spectrometer that significantly reduces sample preparation times and improves capabilities regarding clandestine laboratory drug analysis
- One large format inkjet color printer to be used for large scale crime scene diagrams and other courtroom presentations
- Tire Impression Software to assist in the identification of the origin on unknown tire tracks at crime scenes
2006 Highlights
In August 2006, the Metro Crime Lab was awarded a contract for construction of a DNA laboratory. Construction began in January 2007 and by mid to late 2008 the lab should be functional.
During 2006, the forensic chemistry section analyzed over 2,000 blood alcohol cases. This section was also responsible for analyzing over 465 total drug cases, involving over 1,440 individual items. Nearly 7,900 chemical tests were performed by this three person section.
The Metro Crime Lab’s firearms section was responsible for processing 249 ballistics cases in 2006. Approximately 200 firearms were fired for the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN). These firearms were prepared and then submitted to the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI). Over 200 cartridge cases and approximately 175 bullets were prepared for NIBIN submission to CBI.