Jackson Free Press

Attorney General Jim Hood is recommending budget increases for the state crime lab and the Mississippi Medical Examiner's Office to the House En Banc Judiciary Committee today. The state currently allots $9.8 million to the state crime lab and the state medical examiner's office, but an attorney general's task force recommends almost doubling that amount, at least in the first year, to finance lab equipment, DNA analysis technology, medical examiners and support staff.

The crime lab is currently fractured, with separate facilities in several different locations. Most states assign 1000 square feet per employee, while Mississippi has more than 100 employees working in less than 30,000 square feet.

The task force is requesting the initial infusion of money, as well as a bond bill to pay for a consolidated facility. Additional funding above the current $9.8 million budget will be revenue neutral, thanks to an additional $13 to $15 fee on law enforcement citations. The state already imposes a $1 fee on tickets, which generates $700 million for the state.

Arkansas recently passed a law placing a $25 fee on all civil filings, and in four years, that state has reduced its backlog of 16,000 cases to zero, and their turn-around on case evidence analysis is far superior to that of Mississippi, according to Hood's office.