The City of Phoenix Police Department celebrated the commencement of construction of the new Forensic Crime Laboratory at 7th Avenue and Washington Street Thursday, August 19, 2004.
The
new Forensic Crime Lab will be a three story building, with two floors
above ground and one below. Construction is scheduled to start in October
2004, and should be completed in the fall of 2006. With nearly 100,000
square feet of space, the new facility increases work space by over five
times the current 19,000 square feet. The facility will include a scientific
laboratory wing and an office wing on each floor, as well as an underground
parking structure with a landscaped park-like setting at street level.
All modern crime lab functions will be available. Evidence item will
be examined for fingerprints, biological evidence, and other forms of
trace evidence, all of which play a vital role in identifying or eliminating
a suspect in a criminal investigation. Drug testing, ballistic analysis,
and vehicle processing will all be performed in the new facility, which
will also house the Crime Scene Mobile Response Unit. The new lab will
also house modern computerized forensic databases which enhance criminal
investigations. These include AFIS (Automatic Fingerprint Identification
System), which links a suspect's fingerprints to a crime, NIBIN (National
Integrated Ballistics Network), which links shooting crimes through ballistic
evidence found at crime scenes, and CODIS (Combined DNA Identification
System), which is utilized in suspect identifications and eliminations
in cold cases, sexual assaults, homicides, and other violent crimes.
When completed, the forensic laboratory will have the capabilities to
assist 
in
resolving case back-log issues, create more space to house increasing
number of employees who work in forensics and ballistics, and improve
the efficiency through modern design planning. These improvements will
move cases through the judicial system more effectively and efficiently.
This facility will be a powerful new tool to help in our on-going efforts
to impact crime and make Phoenix the safest major city in the nation.