Currently, the State of South Carolina has only two laboratories designated for the analysis of DNA for law enforcement. One of those labs was developed by the Richland County Sheriff's Office in 2004. The State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) in Columbia maintains the other lab.

Since developing its own DNA lab, the Richland County Sheriff's Office is able to analyze all its own DNA evidence (approximately 1,440 cases a year). The remaining 45 counties in South Carolina, Beaufort County included, must rely on the SLED lab for all DNA analysis requests. As of March 2007, the SLED lab had a backlog of 700 criminal cases. The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office currently has approximately 125 cases at SLED pending DNA analysis, and the municipal agencies within our county have approximately 210 cases pending. These backlogs result in a turnaround time averaging 1 year.

What is the financial impact to county taxpayers of relying on SLED for DNA analysis?

Each sample submitted to SLED for analysis:

This amounts to a cost of $247 per case. Using the 125 cases Beaufort County currently has awaiting analysis at SLED, we will have spent $30,875 in one year just to deliver these cases to SLED and then return them to our property room in Beaufort.

Decreasing the turn around time from the current 1 year to approximately 30 days (the turnaround time reported by Richland County Sheriff's Office lab) also decreases the costs incurred in housing an inmate while waiting for DNA reports for trial. When you consider that it costs approximately $55.51 per day to house an inmate in the Beaufort County Detention Center, it becomes exceedingly clear how substantial the savings will be with the decreased wait for DNA reports.

In this age of technology, DNA analysis has become one of the most effective and indisputable tools in law enforcement's arsenal for identifying and convicting criminals. As technology has advanced, so has criminal enterprise. However, DNA analysis is often responsible for identifying violent offenders that may have otherwise gone unidentified. Beaufort County has experienced notable success in utilizing DNA collection and analysis, identifying and convicting murders, rapists, and burglars.

In addition, DNA analysis offers humanitarian benefits realized in the aftermath of tragic events like the 9-11 terrorist attacks and the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. The identification of the victims of these events often relied solely on the method of DNA analysis when other methods were inconclusive or not applicable. Should a hurricane or any other catastrophic event strike the Low Country, having our own DNA lab would enable the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office to bring closure more quickly for the families of missing or deceased victims.

The benefits of establishing a DNA lab that will serve our growing local needs will be numerous and invaluable to our community and its citizens. This community deserves the best technology the Sheriff's Office can offer in protecting the interests and safety of all.