Forensic Services
New Director!
A changing of the guard has taken place with Chief Forensic Scientist Jay Henry taking over as Crime Lab Director.
Outgoing Director Stu Smith (pictured on right) has taken another position in DPS as Special Programs Director and in - house consultant to the Commissioner's Office. Director Smith had been at the State Crime Lab a little over three years and in that time has ushered in a number of changes that helped the lab achieve a number of goals. Forensic Scientists received a new pay scale and pay package, streamlined evidence handling and drug testing cut case turnaround times in the drug sections statewide from months to a few days. The Utah DPS Lab became the second full service Laboratory in the United States of America to pursue the gold standard of testing laboratory accreditations by undergoing the International Standards Organization (ISO) audits (December 2006) in all scientific disciplines and be ISO 17025 accredited (anticipation date is July 2007). Director Smith will add his experience to the Special Projects Office for the benefit of the entire agency.
Director Jay Henry (pictured on left) has been a member of the scientific team at the State Crime Lab for more than seventeen years and has a background as a Chemist, Biologist, and in quality assurance before taking a position as Deputy Director and Chief Scientist of the Lab. Director Henry has been a central figure in all the accomplishments the lab has achieved in the last decade. Director Smith marked the move as "one of the best days of my career," when describing turning the reins over to Director Henry. Director Henry and Smith both say the staff and the future of the lab are in great shape and are proud of Utah's Forensic Laboratory system.
Alta Marshal's Office Partners with State Crime Lab to Bust Crime
Alta Marshal Jerry Larson called it a great use of resources and a great idea, when Alta approached the State Crime Lab with a new KrimeSite Imager and an idea. The KrimeSite Imager user reflected ultra violet light to look at fingerprint evidence at crime scenes. Evidence not visible to the unaided eye is made visible and can be photographed in place without taking the chance to altering or destroying the evidence. Pictured on the left is Alta Deputy Marshal Mike Morey delivering the KrimeSite Imager to DPS Crime Laboratory. Impressions Section Manager Karen Elliot (pictured on right) Alta and DPS worked out the details and the deal was sealed to have the State Crime Lab house, maintain and use the new equipment around the state on crime scenes in return for training and some crime scene assistance for the Town of Alta. Thank you Town of Alta and Marshal Jerry Larson for making this equipment available to solve crime statewide in Utah.
The Utah Bureau of Forensic Services is a full service crime laboratory system. Four laboratories are strategically located throughout the state of Utah to provide easier access and personalized services to the criminal justice community.
The system is designed to assist law enforcement and prosecutors in analyzing evidence taken from crime scenes across the State of Utah.
The majority of cases that are brought to the laboratory involve analysis in the areas of forensic chemistry, latent prints, or forensic biology.
Each laboratory uses state-of-the-art technology and equipment in the analysis of evidence.
What do I need to do to get a job in a crime laboratory?
The answer to this question is to first assess what you actually want to do. Television shows such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigations have misrepresented the role of crime laboratory personnel. On television, the CSI investigators do it all, from collecting the evidence at the scene, analyzing it at the laboratory and performing follow-up interviews with suspects and finally, and making the arrest. This is not an accurate picture of most crime laboratory operations.
All of the above-mentioned investigation duties are typically broken down and given to different individuals in the criminal justice community. For instance, the crime scene technician performs the majority of crime scene processing in the field, criminalists analyze the evidence in the laboratory and police investigators perform all interviews and make the arrests.
Each one of the individuals is responsible for their own piece of the puzzle.