North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation is Making Changes

Today, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and members of the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) gave a news conference regarding the recent changes at the SBI. Cooper said that the SBI is looking to expand public oversight and repair its tarnished reputation by hiring a new permanent Lab Director, receiving input from the criminal justice community and forensic experts, and appointing an ombudsman - former Judge Vince Rozier of Wake County - to serve as a liaison between the agency and the criminal justice system and the public at large. Other changes include a comprehensive legal review of all lab sections, establishing a forensic science advisory board to review lab operations, and undergoing a more stringent accreditation process.

Officials are closely examining SBI operations in the wake of concerns raised last year about how agents handled blood evidence. An outside review of crime lab operations found that approximately 200 cases were improperly handled during a 16-year period ending in 2003.