Springfield Crime Lab opens

Officials this morning dedicated the city's new crime lab, a project four years in the making.

Gov. Matt Blunt and Congressman Roy Blunt were on hand for the event, along with representatives from the city, Greene County and Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The 30,000-square-foot Springfield Crime Laboratory, at 425 E. Phelps St., eliminates the need to send most local criminal cases to the Jefferson City crime lab for processing. It's expected to reduce processing time to 30 to 60 days for most cases and increase efficiency for law enforcement officers and lab employees by cutting down on trips to the capital, according to a news release.

Forensic science services will be provided in the specialties of firearms/toolmarks, latent fingerprints, DNA, trace evidence, toxicology and drug chemistry. The lab also will participate in the FBI's Combined DNA Index System database, which allows DNA profiles developed from evidence to be searched at the state and national levels.

The lab initially employs 27, according to the release.

The $6.8 million project was funded by $1.9 million from the state, $1.8 million from the city's level property tax, $468,775 from a federal grant, and $2.7 million in low-interest loans from area banks that more than 20 regional communities have agreed to help pay back.

Project architects were Creative Ink Architects and Buxton-Kubik-Dodd Inc.; the general contractor was Flintco; and the project manager was Louie Morrow of the city's public works department.

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