A newly exposed integrity review at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and a multiyear staffing expansion have combined to lengthen processing times for submitted sexual-assault forensic kits to roughly 517 days, CBI Director Chris Schaeffer told the Joint Judiciary Committee on Jan. 8.

Schaeffer said the bureau discovered a pattern of data manipulation by a former analyst after reviewing the analyst's work. The CBI has reviewed more than 10,700 cases the analyst handled and identified 1,003 cases requiring closer scrutiny. The bureau says the review work removed DNA scientists from casework and contributed to the longer turnaround times.

"We went from about 275 days at the beginning of this review to 517 days," Schaeffer said, adding that some submitted kits are triaged and processed faster when courts or imminent safety concerns demand it. "None of it is acceptable."

Deputy executive director Stan Hilkey and Schaeffer described a two-track response: an immediate, internal and external review of laboratory processes and longer-term capacity increases. Schaeffer said CBI currently employs 31 DNA scientists, of whom 16 are cleared to do independent case work while the others remain in training; eight additional scientists are joining the bureau. The agency also said it will bring in independent consultants to perform a process review and consider best practices other states use.

Public testimony from two survivors underscored the human toll of extended wait times. Miranda Spencer, who described being drugged and sexually assaulted more than 400 days earlier, said she still had no laboratory result and therefore no charging decision in her case. "For over 400 days, I've not felt safe in public, in my own home," she told the committee. "The kit backlog feels so inhumane to me as a survivor." Kelsey Harvard, who works on survivor resources, urged the state to publish clear timelines and to model the fast turnarounds achieved by some states.

Schaeffer said outsourcing to accredited private labs is an option the bureau is exploring, but he stressed that sending evidence to outside labs does not eliminate internal workload: CBI still must receive, document and, when appropriate, enter profiles into CODIS. The bureau also cautioned that accredited outsourcing vendors are out of state, which adds logistical steps.

Sen. Chris Wiseman and other legislators pressed the department for a clear, costed plan. Hilkey said the executive branch and the JBC were compiling a staffing-and-cost analysis for the legislature and the governor's office. "This is a function of time, formula and money," Hilkey said. "We don't have a final answer yet, but we are working on it with urgency."

CBI emphasized that a criminal investigation into the former analyst is active and that the agency must not prejudice that probe; the bureau said that constraint limits the detail it can disclose publicly about the personnel case. However, Schaeffer reiterated the bureau's commitment to notification procedures: CBI has notified district attorneys about cases that may be affected and is coordinating with prosecutors about case review priorities.

Committee members asked whether the bureau could provide more granular reporting on which submitting agencies account for the largest number of kits, and CBI agreed to provide further detail to the committee. Hilkey and Schaeffer also said they would present options that could include increased hiring, faster training pipelines and targeted outsourcing to private, accredited labs.

For survivors and defense attorneys alike, the committee heard, the delays are consequential: unresolved kit results can delay victim protections such as restraining orders, crimp prosecutions, and complicate post-conviction claims. Several legislators called for repeated progress reports during 2025.

CBI recommended an aspirational operational goal of returning routine kit results within 90 days once the backlog is reduced; Schaeffer called 90 days "a realistic but ambitious target" given the technical training and accreditation requirements for DNA scientists.