The Rhode Island State Crime Laboratory at the University of Rhode Island has been experiencing delays in investigations since a testing suspension in November of 2024 and shortage of examiners.
Around the time of the testing suspension, the three main examiners working at the RI Crime Lab decided to pursue other opportunities at different labs, some going as far as California, professor Dennis Hilliard, director of the state crime lab, said.
Various cases, credited to the loss of three of the main examiners on the team, were held up after the testing suspension, according to Hilliard.
“Well, there was a backlog of cases before this all occurred, and there were about 150 cases of backlog,” Hilliard said. “So what happened when we lost to all three examiners, we had like 30 cases that were ready to come to court.”
Before finding a new examiner, the URI Crime Lab hired consultants from New York who would review cases through mail, according to Hilliard. This affected the time a case took to be reviewed tremendously.
“The process can be as short as a day, depending on what’s involved, but couldn’t take as many as three weeks, depending on what’s involved,” Hilliard said. “Because, again, you’re involving different people.”
Without examiners on the team, Hilliard said he would send out reports and evidence to be reviewed to the different consultants who are based in New Hampshire and Texas.
Consultants would then come back with their own reports and if the two agreed, the report would be submitted according to Hilliard. If not, the process would be repeated until the examiners came to a mutual agreement.
Finding an examiner was a challenge due to the many qualifications that a case examiner needs before working at the crime lab, Hilliard said. Qualifications consist of a master’s degree in a science field is preferred along with years of experience.
“I’m looking for somebody who has 15 [or] 20 years of experience before I can hire,” Hilliard said.
After an extensive search, the crime lab has recruited an examiner to join the team, according to Hilliard. The new examiner will be welcomed in January and has all of the qualifications that the team was looking for at the start of the hiring process.
This is good news for the crime lab, as the investigative process will be back up to speed according to Hilliard.
