CBI To Take Over All DUI, Blood Testing In Colorado But Not Without Concerns

DENVER (CBS4)- A private lab is out of business and thousands of criminal cases could be in jeopardy after the Colorado Bureau of Investigation took over all blood testing in the state without the money or work force to keep up. CBS4 first broke this story last week.

District attorneys are now sounding an alarm, saying public safety is at risk if Gov. Jared Polis doesn't step in and fix the situation.

Democrat Michael Dougherty, District Attorney for the 20th Judicial District, and Republican George Brauchler, District Attorney for the 18th Judicial District, say DUI's, murder, sexual assault, vehicular homicide and any case where blood testing is needed are at risk of being dismissed.

"I think guilty people will go free if we're unable to get these tests done in time and unable to produce experts at trial," said Dougherty.

CBI claims it didn't plan to take on law enforcement testing for the entire state when it announced this month that it would offer the tests for free.

ChemaTox, a private lab that had been doing 70% of the testing, has been forced out of business.

"The problem is once ChemaTox is gone there is no other alternative," said Brauchler, "Having killed off the private sector alternative, we will only have CBI."

And CBI's Director John Camper has admitted the lab was unprepared. After CBS4's initial report, the state budget committee held a hearing, but Polis may be the only one who can help. He is able to ask for emergency funding. But he has not done so, even after the District Attorneys Council warned his office of the consequences.

"The Governor can fix this," said Brauchler.

Dougherty underscored the urgency of the situation, "We should not be in position where we have to prioritize between a sex assault, a vehicular homicide or a DUI."

But he admits they will have to make those tough decisions if nothing changes and there is a backlog, "That's something that can not happen in the state of Colorado. We can't have a lab that takes over the entire industry but doesn't take over the responsibility for getting it done right and getting it done in a timely fashion."

It's not just testing. The DAs worry CBI also lacks expert witnesses needed to introduce blood tests at trial.

"Undo delay cannot be tolerated and under the constitution will not be tolerated. These cases will be dismissed," said Dougherty.

Brauchler is reminded of the phrase "justice delayed is justice denied."

"I think it's going to have a negative impact on our ability to hold people accountable for the crimes that put us most at risk. I don't care who's at fault. I want it fixed and I want it fixed now."

The Colorado Defense Bar is also concerned that the accuracy of testing could be compromised by a lack of resources at CBI. It says a small difference in test results could have big consequences for defendants. CBI says it plans to hire two additional toxicologists and increase "batch" testing. Still, CBI Director John Camper admits turn-around times for test results could still double or triple.

The Governor's Office says he is working on it, but Sarah Urfer, owner of the private lab ChemaTox, says his involvement comes too late for her.

She lost her business, "Overnight the state took away everything I've worked for my entire career."