Source: United States Senator for Ohio Sherrod Brown
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $250,000 grant to the Cuyahoga County Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (CCRFSL) through the Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program. These funds will be used to meet increased demand and process casework. To build capacity and reduce the backlog, CCRFSL will also hire two full time forensic scientists.
“As the forensic medicine field continues to experience shortages and backlogs, we need to ensure that funding is provided to support the hard-working individuals in the medical examiner workforce,” said Brown. “These funds are essential to reduce backlog in the Cuyahoga County forensic lab.”
The CCRFSL supports the investigative functions of the Medical Examiner and law enforcement by conducting scientific examinations in the areas of Controlled Substance, DNA, Fingerprints, Firearms, Trace Evidence, and Toxicology analysis. The laboratory is responsible for analyzing evidentiary material associated with criminal investigations for the city of Cleveland and the entire metro area of Cuyahoga County which includes about 59 municipal agencies and another dozen or so specialized or county-wide agencies.
The Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program awards grants to states and units of local government to help improve forensic science and medical examiner/coroner services, including services provided by laboratories operated by states and units of local government.
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