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In the News: North America
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Sexual Assault Kit Tracking



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About Us
 
STACS DNA delivers sample and kit tracking software specifically designed for forensic DNA casework and database labs. Since 2000, STACS DNA's solutions have addressed the shortcomings of many current LIMS by providing an automatic audit trail, DNA-specific workflows, CODIS and instrumentation integration, automatic grant tracking and unmatched professional services. Most of the major forensic DNA labs in the United States are our customers, along with the U.S. Army and the RCMP.
 
Why are we called STACS DNA?
"Sample Tracking and Control Software" for DNA Labs" ... 
What we do is in our name!

May 2016

STACS DNA Software Helps Crime Labs Track Sexual Assault Kits 

STACS-CW Enterprise helps forensic DNA labs save time processing and reporting sexual assault kits

STACS-CW Enterprise allows casework DNA laboratories to easily track and report sexual assault kit processing to help them save time and reduce errors.
 
Sexual Assault kits are receiving an increased level of attention as pressure escalates for kits to be processed and victims informed of results. Due to a previous lack of tools, many forensic DNA laboratories use spreadsheets to track the number of kits in the lab and the associated processing details; for labs that process hundreds or thousands of kits, this is cumbersome and error-prone, making it difficult and time-consuming to find and summarize information and prepare reports.

STACS-CW Enterprise tracks:
 
  • Serology turnaround time
  • Male screening turnaround time
  • DNA turnaround time
  • Number of kits submitted
  • Status of each kit (in progress or completed)
  • CODIS entries
 
With STACS-CW, lab staff can save countless hours of work by having easy access to data related to sexual assault kit processing and quickly-prepared reports. In addition, STACS-CW's lab management and integration with CODIS and statistical applications gives labs the ability to efficiently track and document consumable, instrument, and sample processing activities while also decreasing the potential for errors. These capabilities are currently available in STACS-CW Enterprise software and are in use in labs across the Unites States.
 
For the full story, click here
For more on STACS-CW, click here
For more on SAK tracking with STACS-CW, click here
 
Events
Please join us at:

September 26-29, 2016
Minneapolis, MN
 
In the News: North America 
Skin cells proved to be the last puzzle piece in this arrest.
 
Agencies are submitting 50 or more cases at one time because they're trying to now come into compliance with the state protocol.
 
New federal funding could help address the woeful backlog of DNA kits that the state has been unable to test during the budget impasse.

Funds to provide justice for victims of rape, increase prosecution efforts.

Analysts involved in the DNA testing must be available to testify in support of the evidence in a criminal trial.

DNA testing has been a vital part of correcting wrongful convictions, yet access to it is uneven.
 
The new law requires DNA samples to be taken upon booking of a felony arrest.
 
A federal grant could fund counting and testing rape kits sitting in boxes of evidence inside the Tulsa police property room.

About 5,500 kits in New Mexico haven't been tested, officials say
 
Following the release of a composite profile for a potential murder suspect, Warwick Police have received multiple calls and tips to follow up on.

DNA evidence has been extremely beneficial in solving crimes.
 
Familial DNA found a match and it appears it can hold up in court.

The legislation expands the state DNA database by adding to the crimes that prompt collection of DNA samples from people convicted of crimes.
 
Virginia has joined a handful of states that have taken legislative action to end the backlog by adopting a law to ensure that the commonwealth's untested kits will be processed quickly beginning July 1.
 
In the News - International

Egyptian forensics officials collected DNA from relatives of EgyptAir MS804 victims to help identify body parts retrieved from the Mediterranean, where the crash killed 66 people.
 
Delhi government proposes to reduce to zero the pendency in testing of DNA and biological samples in forensic labs here within 18 months.
 
Kuwait is set to become the first country in the world to require all its citizens, visitors and expatriates to provide DNA samples for the government's database

The documentary series shows actual forensic science being used to solve real crime cases in New Zealand.

Nigeria plans to establish a Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) data-bank to thwart the terrorists as well as reunite children and parents separated by the Boko Haram crisis.

Authorities will perform DNA tests on the body of a man who was killed in an American drone strike to determine whether the slain man is actually Taliban chief.

Errors that led to fingerprint and DNA records of hundreds of terror suspects being deleted were more widespread than thought, it has emerged.
 
Articles of Interest

How does the development of DNA fingerprinting affect human rights to protect personal information?
 
The criminal justice system's reliance on DNA evidence, often treated as infallible, carries significant risks

The forensic technique is becoming ever more common-and ever less reliable.

Julie Smolyansky discusses campus rape and the outrage of untested rape kits.

Probing Question: Do women dominate the field of forensic science?
Has forensic science, in fact, become a woman's field?
 
NIJ report: Development of a Lean Facility Design Roadmap for Design-Bid-Build Forensic Facilities

Laboratories' IT teams are becoming more and more important. Here are some keys to communicating with IT.

Risk-based decision-making and appropriate analytical tools can improve lab quality.