The County of Fresno, California is awarded a $444,551 formula grant from the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance under the DNA Backlog Reduction Program (CFDA 16.741). The grant funding will be used by the Fresno County Sheriff's Office Forensic Laboratory to decrease backlogged DNA casework and increase capacity. Specifically, the grant will support hiring an additional criminalist, providing continued funding for another criminalist position, sending four staff members to the 2025 ISHI Conference, maintaining service contracts for DNA analysis equipment, purchasing licenses and maintenance for STRmix computer systems, and outsourcing DNA sample analysis to private vendors. The goal is to reduce the turnaround time for processing DNA evidence from 60-90 days down to less time, as well as decrease the overall DNA case backlog facing the forensic laboratory. The grant period runs from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2025.
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