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Kane County approves forensic lab equipment purchases aimed at cutting toxicology and DNA delays
Summary
The Kane County committee approved resolutions to buy forensic instruments funded by opioid‑settlement and federal grants, aiming to cut months‑long wait times for toxicology and DNA results to hours or days and build a revenue-paying regional lab.
KANE COUNTY — The county’s Judicial and Public Safety Committee on July 16 approved a package of equipment purchases to expand the Kane County Forensic Laboratory and shorten long delays in toxicology and DNA testing.
The coroner, Dr. Silva, and lab staff told the committee the upgrades — paid for largely with opioid‑settlement dollars and federal community project funding — will let the county produce faster results for investigations and court cases. Sarah Ware, who presented the laboratory overview, said the lab has secured about $963,000 in instruments through a fiscal‑year 2024 appropriation and another federal allocation of roughly $1.03 million for laboratory information‑management software and validation work.
"Rapid DNA can generate a profile in 90 minutes," Ware said, describing a new investigative‑leads capability intended to speed local criminal inquiries and ease the backlog at state labs.
The committee approved three purchase resolutions presented by the coroner’s office: a forensic evidence‑screening instrument, a real‑time PCR system and equipment for generating DNA profiles. Committee members pressed staff on staffing and oversight: federal grants will pay for instruments but not ongoing salaries, and accreditation — important for court testimony and external contracts — could take up to two years, lab staff warned.
Coroner staff said the in‑county lab will reduce reliance on outside providers that can take months to return results, citing examples in which outside toxicology or DNA processing stretched timelines and delayed death certificates or criminal investigations. Timothy Ruple, the lab’s chemistry director, described cases where same‑day identification of controlled substances and other analyses helped officers take immediate action.
Lab leaders also said they expect to be able to charge other agencies for services once procedures and staffing are in place, which could create recurring revenue to offset staffing costs. The county will continue work to define governance and funding responsibility across the coroner’s office, the sheriff’s office and the state’s attorney, which lab leaders said they are developing.
The resolutions authorizing the purchases passed on roll call and will proceed to the executive committee for final action. The coroner’s office said it will return with details about staffing needs, accreditation timelines and proposed cost‑recovery agreements.
