Harris County DA Pat Lykos went before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week to ask for money that would be used to help get a regional crime lab up and running.
Lykos testified Tuesday in support of the Innocence Protection Act and urged lawmakers to implement a pilot program of independent DNA testing labs, with Houston as the first site.
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She estimated $15 million would get a lab up and running in temporary offices in six months.
“The barrier is money,” she said. “The county has already developed a plan. I want to accelerate that plan.”
These things never move quickly, but given that the alternative is to wait till 2011 for the Lege to act, it’s relatively accelerated. I hope she succeeds.