Post by CCADP on Aug 16, 2005 6:49:12 GMT -5
Cost of cleaning up HPD's crime lab higher than first thought
Michael Bromwich told Houston's city council Monday that more money is needed to finish cleaning up the crime lab.
By Miya Shay
ABC13 Eyewitness News
(8/15/05 - HOUSTON) — On Monday, Houston city council was told that it will take an additional million and a half dollars to finish the next phase of the HPD crime lab cleanup. The money is needed to finish retesting evidence from some death row cases, but police officials say paying for the tests could mean fewer officers on the streets.
When the city of Houston hired a special master to dig into the ongoing problems at the HPD crime labs, neither the city or hired gun Michael Bromwich had any idea how expensive a proposition it would become.
"We need more money to do all the work that everyone expects us to do, which includes reviewing 2, 799 cases that the lab has worked on over a period of time from 1987 to 2004," he said.
In front of a city council committee Monday, Bromwich said his firm needs $2.6 million to complete the second phase of the crime lab investigation. The first phase already costs more than $1 million. That's hundreds of thousands of dollars over budget.
And while it did reveal two crime lab employees might have falsified results, it didn't answer one major question.
"I was hopeful that he would have been able to give us specific insight as to whether or not we had innocent people sitting on death row right now," said Houston City Councilman Adrian Garcia.
Bromwich says the phase two study would provide answers, but the Houston Police Department says it might have to cut a police cadet contract or cancel a civilian jail contract to pay for it.
"This is not a scare tactic," said HPD Executive Assistant Chief Martha Montalvo. "We were allocated a certain amount of money. We did not anticipate the cost of what's occurring to be as high as it is."
Despite ongoing questions as to how the city will pay for phase two, one councilmember we spoke with says she doesn't believe a police cadet class will need to be sacrificed.
"It's just obscene that we would be talking about the budget, in my estimation," said Houston City Councilmember Ada Edwards. "We're talking about peoples' lives. And we're talking three million dollars? C'mon. We spend that much on Super Bowl games and parties."
Just how will the city of Houston pay for phase two, which many councilmembers believe is needed? They're going to look into a proposed solution that they can vote on in the next couple of weeks.
The HPD crime lab was officially certified this past May, but the DNA section is not included in that recognition. Police Chief Harold Hurtt has said earning the national accreditation is an important step in regaining the community's trust. The lab is certified in most areas, except for DNA testing. Chief Hurtt says his department and crime lab employees have made many improvements over the past year to help the lab earn its accreditation.
(Copyright © 2005, KTRK-TV)
Michael Bromwich told Houston's city council Monday that more money is needed to finish cleaning up the crime lab.
By Miya Shay
ABC13 Eyewitness News
(8/15/05 - HOUSTON) — On Monday, Houston city council was told that it will take an additional million and a half dollars to finish the next phase of the HPD crime lab cleanup. The money is needed to finish retesting evidence from some death row cases, but police officials say paying for the tests could mean fewer officers on the streets.
When the city of Houston hired a special master to dig into the ongoing problems at the HPD crime labs, neither the city or hired gun Michael Bromwich had any idea how expensive a proposition it would become.
"We need more money to do all the work that everyone expects us to do, which includes reviewing 2, 799 cases that the lab has worked on over a period of time from 1987 to 2004," he said.
In front of a city council committee Monday, Bromwich said his firm needs $2.6 million to complete the second phase of the crime lab investigation. The first phase already costs more than $1 million. That's hundreds of thousands of dollars over budget.
And while it did reveal two crime lab employees might have falsified results, it didn't answer one major question.
"I was hopeful that he would have been able to give us specific insight as to whether or not we had innocent people sitting on death row right now," said Houston City Councilman Adrian Garcia.
Bromwich says the phase two study would provide answers, but the Houston Police Department says it might have to cut a police cadet contract or cancel a civilian jail contract to pay for it.
"This is not a scare tactic," said HPD Executive Assistant Chief Martha Montalvo. "We were allocated a certain amount of money. We did not anticipate the cost of what's occurring to be as high as it is."
Despite ongoing questions as to how the city will pay for phase two, one councilmember we spoke with says she doesn't believe a police cadet class will need to be sacrificed.
"It's just obscene that we would be talking about the budget, in my estimation," said Houston City Councilmember Ada Edwards. "We're talking about peoples' lives. And we're talking three million dollars? C'mon. We spend that much on Super Bowl games and parties."
Just how will the city of Houston pay for phase two, which many councilmembers believe is needed? They're going to look into a proposed solution that they can vote on in the next couple of weeks.
The HPD crime lab was officially certified this past May, but the DNA section is not included in that recognition. Police Chief Harold Hurtt has said earning the national accreditation is an important step in regaining the community's trust. The lab is certified in most areas, except for DNA testing. Chief Hurtt says his department and crime lab employees have made many improvements over the past year to help the lab earn its accreditation.
(Copyright © 2005, KTRK-TV)