Edwin M. Lee Office of the Mayor Mayor San Francisco July 31, 2016 The Honorable John K. Stewart Presiding Judge*

R2016

Recommendation R.B.3: The Crime Lab should conform to the mandate of AB 1517, the Sexual Assault Victim's DNA Bill of Rights, by analyzing evidence and notifying the victim, if requested, that the evidence has been processed. It should publish the statistics of its compliance quarterly. Requires further analysis. AB 1517 was passed and incorporated as an update to the California Penal Code Section 680(b)(7)(B)(i), "The Sexual Assault Victims DNA Bill of Rights". The Crime Lab conforms to the mandates regarding Consolidated Response to the Civil Grand Jury - San Francisco's Crime Lab: Promoting Confidence and Building Credibility Recommendations July 31, 2016 timelines for analyzing and uploading results in the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). The current turnaround time for sexual assault evidence kits is 92 days. The Crime Lab further adheres to the recent resolution passed by the Police Commission. Victim notification is carried out by assigned case investigators out of sensitivity to the risk of re-traumatizing survivors by delivering information in a non-personal setting. This is carried out under mandated timelines as outlined in the Special Victims Unit Order #16-01. The SFPD reports on these statistics of compliance bi-annually through the Police Commission in a public, televised meeting. Recommendation R.C.1: The Crime Lab should continue to use flexible outsourcing when in-house staffing is insufficient to keep up with the work load. Recommendation has been implemented. The Crime Lab is currently outsourcing and the Fiscal budget has additional funds identified for this purpose. Recommendation R.C.2: The Crime Lab should continue with its efforts to staff the Lab fully so that the expense incurred by using outsourced expert witnesses can be reduced. Requires further analysis. Under the new Forensic Services Director, a multi-year hiring plan will be developed to address the staffing needs of the Crime Lab. Currently there are 6 new Forensic Analysts in various stages of the hiring process. Job offers have been extended to 3 of the 6 with an anticipated start date in August of 2016. The remaining 3 are in the background process. Additional positions in the Fingerprint Examination Unit are in process with input from the Crime Lab Manager and the Identification Section Manager. Recommendation R.C.3: The Drug Analysis Lab should be re-established in the Crime Lab. Requires further analysis. The equipment and infrastructure necessary to re-open the Drug Analysis Unit is in place. In order to ensure this takes place in a systematic manner that supports the overall operations of the Forensic Services Division, the Chief of Police has directed that the newly selected Forensic Services Director develop the staffing and operational plan for the unit upon assuming control of the Division. It is expected that the selection of the new Director will be completed by January of 2017. Recommendation R.D.2: A robust quality assurance program is need to address day- to- day problems and go beyond the basic check list of accreditation. Recommendation has been implemented. A quality assurance program is a requirement for national accreditation, which the SFPD Crime Lab has held for more than a decade. A full-time Quality Assurance Manager (QAM) oversees this program. With the adoption and implementation of the ISO 17025 standards in 2014, the quality assurance program has continued to evolve and expand to support a system of continuous improvement. This program includes a Consolidated Response to the Civil Grand Jury - San Francisco's Crime Lab: Promoting Confidence and Building Credibility Recommendations July 31, 2016 stringent documentation and monitoring system with well-defined action plans for preventative and corrective improvements and time-delineated action responses and follow-up measures. Recommendation R.D.3: We recommend initial outside consultation to provide the new Quality Assurance Manager access to mentoring, training in the process of root cause analysis and general oversight. The QAM should be required to visit other Bay Area Crime Labs with well-established QA programs to learn from them. Recommendation has been implemented. The current QAM underwent training in accreditation requirements and technical assessment of quality systems under the ISO 17025 standards in 2013. This training included the requirements on how to implement and manage the technical, administrative and quality management system of a forensic laboratory. Topics included a focus on root cause analysis, document control and corrective action. The class roster included other crime lab directors, analysts and QAMs from the Bay Area. Regular contact with other agencies is, and has always been, a practice of the SFPD Crime Lab QAM. The current QAM has access to procedural manuals from other accredited laboratories and has incorporated elements from other laboratories into our quality assurance program. In addition, the current QAM is a member of forensic Quality Assurance groups and attends regional Quality Assurance study meetings to assist in a continuity of information exchange between other Crime labs and provide daily opportunities for collaboration and feedback from Forensic QAMs across the country. Recommendation R.E.1: After a change in protocol, the technical review of a completed case should be done only by a supervisor Criminalist III. Recommendation has been implemented. After a change in protocol, the Crime Lab uses Supervisor, Criminalist III personnel to conduct the technical review of completed cases. A progress report will be submitted to the Grand Jury in December