CORPUS CHRISTI, TX — Whether investigators are looking into a drug cases or violent crime, much of the work focuses on evidence.
KRIS 6 News reporter Naidy Escobar walked inside the Texas Department of Public Safety crime lab to get a closer look at what the experts do.
The work over at the Texas Department of Public Safety crime lab could get pretty busy. Brian Nacu, the laboratory manager said they not only assist with investigations but also help victims and the judicial system.
"There is a lot of hoops that we have to go through a lot of them are good you know we focus on quality, quality is at the most of importance for us here," Nacu said.
While seeking quality results is a priority, Nacu said he and his team work hard to get answers
“ All of our DNA cases we are turning around in 90 days, so we are trying to get results as quickly as possible so there aren’t any delays and there is not a lag, and for drugs our goal is 30 days,” he said.
The case numbers vary, they see about 50 to 70 DNA cases and about 300 drug-related cases in a month.
Nacu said they see many drug cases and usually it could be from a simple traffic stop to maybe even a drug bust. For the DNA cases, most of them are regarding sexual assaults.
In honor of National Forensic Science Week he said it’s important to educate the community on what they do.
Over 80 students from around the Coastal Bend were exposed to the variety of careers they can probably pursue in the future.
London High School junior Angelina Espinoza said she was super excited to be able to take part in the tour DPS was offering.
“It shows you that there is so much more than just you know investigators coming in and putting pieces together it’s more than just science and other topics to but science plays such a big part and it literally saves peoples lives all around the world," she said.
This lab in Corpus Christi is one of 16 across the state. DPS plans tours like this to help gain interest for people who choose the industry as a career.
