Tag Archives: crime lab

Rape kit lawsuit dismissal will be appealed

Posted on August 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

To be expected. Two women who on Friday lost a lawsuit against the City of Houston and a variety of officials over a rape kit backlog will file an appeal, an attorney for the women announced in a news release … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rape kit backlog lawsuit dismissed

Posted on August 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. A federal judge has dismissed a 2017 lawsuit two rape victims filed against Houston’s current mayor and police chief and five sets of predecessors, among others, for allowing a backlog of rape kits to accumulate over decades without being … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Lawsuit filed over untested rape kits

Posted on October 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This could be a big deal. A former Houston woman is suing the City of Houston and a long list of current and former mayors and police chiefs for failing to investigate a backlog of more than 6,000 untested rape … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lawsuit filed over untested rape kits

Roadside drug tests

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe this isn’t such a good idea. A Houston police officer pulled Barry Demings over as he headed to work in Beaumont and plucked a spot of white powder off the floorboard of Demings’ year-old Ford Explorer. Demings had just … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Harris County crime lab experiencing DNA testing backlog

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

These things do happen. Expanded testing for property crimes has helped create a backlog of more than 4,600 DNA cases in the Harris County crime lab, straining its ability to complete the processing of such evidence for sexual assaults and … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The pros and cons of merging the crime labs

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The calls to merge the city and county crime labs are back, but not everyone likes the idea. Merging Houston’s and Harris County’s crime labs, an idea that was rejected several years ago by the city’s mayor when forensic work … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Turner names interim HPD chief

Posted on February 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations, Chief Montalvo. Mayor Sylvester Turner has tapped 36-year Houston Police Department veteran Martha Montalvo to lead the department while his team conducts a nationwide search for a new permanent chief. Montalvo, 56, has served as chief of staff to … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Turner names interim HPD chief

Commissioners Court to get deposed

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and all four county commissioners are scheduled to be deposed Monday in a federal lawsuit filed by former Houston Police Department crime lab supervisors who said they experienced retaliation after … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Commissioners Court to get deposed

Lawsuit against county by former crime lab supervisor partially reinstated

Posted on June 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a bit of a convoluted story. A federal appeals court has reinstated portions of a lawsuit filed by two former Houston Police Department crime lab supervisors who contended that Harris County prosecutors retaliated against them after they exposed problems … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Lawsuit against county by former crime lab supervisor partially reinstated

More on the new Crime Lab boss

Posted on October 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Dr. Daniel Garner, the CEO and president of the Houston Forensic Science Center. Daniel Garner was ready to drift quietly into retirement after decades on the forefront in the field of forensic science. The last part of his career … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on More on the new Crime Lab boss

Construction of joint processing center and forensics facility approved to begin

Posted on June 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Several major building projects – including a state-of-the-art facility for the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences and a voter-approved jail inmate processing center – officially are in the pipeline after Commissioners Court on Tuesday approved a $305 million … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Construction of joint processing center and forensics facility approved to begin

HPD’s good, bad, and ugly

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that the testing of backlogged rape kits has led to the identification of a serial rapist in Houston. Houston police on Tuesday for the first time identified a criminal suspect – a possible serial rapist – … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

HPD crime lab update

Posted on March 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The man who wrote the report detailing all of the HPD crime lab’s problems was back to give a progress report on how things look now. Houston police managers at the once-shuttered crime lab have failed to re-examine tests on … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HPD crime lab update

Clearing the rape kit backlog is producing results

Posted on January 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Very promising results. Private forensic laboratories hired to clear the Houston Police Department’s untested DNA evidence – including a decades-old rape kit backlog – have identified potential offenders in a third of the cases where sufficient DNA samples were found, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Clearing the rape kit backlog is producing results

Anthony Robinson named to crime lab LGC

Posted on December 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent choice. The latest appointment to the city’s crime lab oversight board brings a unique perspective to the post. Anthony Robinson spent 10 years in prison for a rape he did not commit before being exonerated by the kind of … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Anthony Robinson named to crime lab LGC

What’s on the agenda for Mayor Parker in her third term

Posted on November 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that Mayor Parker has been safely re-elected, with a better-than-expected margin, what does she plan to do from here? A triumphant Parker on Tuesday lauded her “decisive” victory but quickly shifted her focus to the coming two years, listing … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2013 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rape kit backlog eliminated

Posted on August 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

More good news. For the first time in its history, the Houston Police Department doesn’t have a backlog of rape kits that haven’t been tested. The backlog, which at one point totalled 6,600 untested rape kits, was eliminated by sending … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Meet the new Crime Lab boss

Posted on August 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

He sounds impressive. The fuzzy process of shifting the city of Houston’s crime lab from the Houston Police Department to an independent board got a little clearer Wednesday with the hiring of a president and CEO for the new operation. … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Meet the new Crime Lab boss

It sure is nice to budget when you have money

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has released her FY2014 budget, and it’s great news for those of you that have been waiting for their single-stream recycling bin. More than 100,000 Houston homes will be added to the city’s single-stream recycling program by this … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on It sure is nice to budget when you have money

Mayor Parker kicks off her campaign

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the time of the season for Mayor Parker, who has a serious challenger this time, but also a stronger hand to play. In her tenure, Parker has given teeth to the city’s historic preservation rules, broken a deadlock with … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2013 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Where does the crime lab go from here?

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that there’s a plan in place to clear the longstanding crime lab backlog, the question is what should we expect from the crime lab going forward? “It’s sort of hard to build a house when you’re trying to dig … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Where does the crime lab go from here?

In praise of CODIS

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We’re catching more crooks thanks to DNA. Not exactly an earth-shattering revelation, but it’s always nice to have some numbers. The number of Texas crimes solved after a suspect’s DNA matched with offenders’ DNA samples stored in the national repository … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on In praise of CODIS

Former HPD lab supervisor files sues Lykos, county

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a nice little going away present for District Attorney Pat Lykos. Two former Houston Police Department crime lab supervisors have filed a federal lawsuit against Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos, saying the county’s top prosecutor retaliated against them … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Former HPD lab supervisor files sues Lykos, county

City-county cooperation

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it? At 9:27 p.m. on Election Day, when it was clear a Metro referendum crucial to both of their road-building budgets had passed, Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack’s phone buzzed with a text message from … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on City-county cooperation

Council approves Mayor’s crime lab plan

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a done deal. City Council has appointed a nine-member board to oversee the city’s crime lab, the first step in yanking it from police department control and setting up a publicly funded non-profit corporation to do evidence testing. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Meet your Crime Lab board

Posted on May 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has recommended nine people be appointed by Council to the governing board for the proposed Houston Forensic Science Local Government Corporation (LGC). “The people I have selected have varied backgrounds in science, law enforcement, public policy, business and … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

The Mayor’s 2013 budget

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What a difference a year – and better sales tax receipts and a better real estate market – makes. Mayor Parker has unveiled her budget for the 2012-2013 fiscal year, and it promises no service cuts, no layoffs, and no … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Groundbreaking on the county’s new DNA forensics lab

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Harris County officials on Tuesday broke ground on a new forensic genetics laboratory, to open later this year, which will let county scientists test DNA evidence in a growing number of cases. The 15,000-square-foot facility, on Holcombe in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Groundbreaking on the county’s new DNA forensics lab

Bromwich on the Mayor’s crime lab proposal

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Michael Bromwich, the author of the report that laid out all of the problems with HPD’s crime lab, expresses his approval of Mayor Parker’s proposal for an independent crime lab. Mayor Annise Parker and her administration have proposed removing the … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Bromwich on the Mayor’s crime lab proposal

More details on the city’s crime lab plan

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s starting to come into focus. An independent crime lab could cost nearly 20 percent more than the current police-run operation, a high-level Parker administration official told a City Council committee this week. Andy Icken, the mayor’s chief development officer, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on More details on the city’s crime lab plan

Meet the Houston Regional Forensic Science Center

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has revealed her vision for an independent regional crime lab. Mayor Annise Parker proposed on Wednesday taking control of the city’s crime lab away from the police department and handing it to an independent seven-member board with expertise … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

County approves building new forensics lab

Posted on January 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Institute of Forensic Sciences is getting a new home. Commissioners Court on Tuesday gave staff the go-ahead to finalize a land deal with the Texas Medical Center that would give the county 2.79 acres at the northeast corner of … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

More on the crime lab and the city jail

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here we have some more information about Mayor Parker’s plans for the crime lab, though it’s still not really clear where this is going. Parker wants to make the lab independent of HPD and the city, overseen instead by a … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Inauguration Day 2012

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Tuesday was Inauguration Day for Mayor Annise Parker, City Controller Ronald Green, and all 16 members of Houston City Council. Annise D. Parker began her second term as mayor of Houston on Monday with a commitment to bring more jobs … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments