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CBI outlines phased audit response; agency weighs creating separate forensic division
Summary
CBI Director Armando Saldate and deputy Lance Allen told the committee a third‑party audit produced 52 recommendations; CBI has completed some phase‑1 items, is implementing others, and is assessing which recommendations require new funding. The agency raised concerns about separating Forensic Services into a standalone division without full staffing and infrastructure funding.
Armando Saldate, the newly appointed director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, and Deputy Director Lance Allen briefed the Joint Budget Committee on a third‑party forensic audit that produced 52 recommendations and a phased remediation plan.
Saldate said some phase‑1 recommendations were completed or are in progress for the July 2025–December 2026 timeframe; other recommendations are deferred pending funding, particularly positions for laboratory managers, embedded IT staff, centralized biological training, an ombudsman role, and expanded firearms and trace‑chemistry capacity.
On laboratory integrity, Allen and Saldate described the Missy Woods case as a driver of scrutiny and remediation. Saldate said the audit and subsequent reviews identified additional integrity notifications (Brady letters) tied to two other scientists in different units; Allen clarified those circumstances differ in scale from the Woods matter. CBI is auditing backlogs and providing dashboards to the committee to show progress.
One major recommendation (recommendation 16) proposes separating Forensic Services from CBI into an independent division. Saldate said an appropriation of about $436,000 was requested for a division director and program assistant; he cautioned that full separation would require additional administrative, IT, records, PIO, hiring and facilities support not covered in that initial ask. Department leadership said the separation is a continued recommendation but that it must be phased and resourced to avoid drawing scientists away from backlog remediation.
Committee members pressed CBI on the number and implications of cases requiring re‑review; CBI confirmed a review is ongoing and said the magnitude of impacted cases is substantially less than the Woods case but remains under investigation. No legislative action was taken during the hearing.
