The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is moving to retest DNA samples in thousands of criminal cases and expects to spend at least $7.5 million to remedy problems discovered in one longtime employee’s lab work, according to a state budget request.
Officials discovered “anomalies” in the DNA testing work of Yvonne “Missy” Woods last year and started both internal and criminal investigations into Woods. She worked for the CBI for 29 years and left before the agency publicly announced the anomalies in November.
About 3,000 DNA samples need to be retested by a third-party laboratory, CBI officials estimated in a January budget request. That will cost roughly $3 million. Additionally, the agency asked for $4.4 million to pay out to district attorney’s offices across Colorado to address claims by people who say they were wrongly convicted of crimes because of Woods’ work.
The former CBI scientist was involved in some of Colorado’s most high-profile criminal cases in recent decades, including the 2004 Kobe Bryant rape case, the 1994 murder of Rhonda Maloney, the prosecution of Aaron Thompson in the death of his daughter, and the murder of University of Colorado student Susannah Chase.
Susan Medina, spokeswoman for the CBI, said in a statement Thursday that the agency aims to “thoroughly examine and assess various aspects” of Woods’ work.
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