Sec. 29-7b. Division of Scientific Services.

(a) There shall be within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection a Division of Scientific Services. The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection shall serve as administrative head of such division, and may delegate jurisdiction over the affairs of such division to a deputy commissioner.

(b) The Division of Scientific Services shall provide technical assistance to law enforcement agencies in the various areas of scientific investigation. The division shall maintain facilities and services for the examination and analysis of evidentiary materials in areas including, but not limited to, chemistry, arson, firearms, questioned documents, microscopy, serology, toxicology, trace evidence, latent fingerprints, impressions and other similar technology. The facilities, services and personnel of the division shall be available, without charge, to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and all duly constituted prosecuting, police and investigating agencies of the state.

(c) The Division of Scientific Services: (1) May investigate any physical evidence or evidentiary material related to a crime upon the request of any federal, state or local agency, (2) may conduct or assist in the scientific field investigation at the scene of a crime and provide other technical assistance and training in the various fields of scientific criminal investigation upon request, (3) shall assure the safe custody of evidence during examination, (4) shall forward a written report of the results of an examination of evidence to the agency submitting such evidence, (5) shall render expert court testimony when requested, and (6) shall conduct ongoing research in the areas of the forensic sciences. The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection or a director designated by the commissioner shall be in charge of the Division of Scientific Services operations and shall establish and maintain a system of case priorities and a procedure for submission of evidence and evidentiary security. The director of the Division of Scientific Services shall be in the unclassified service and shall serve at the pleasure of the commissioner.

(d) In accordance with the provisions of sections 4-38d, 4-38e and 4-39, all powers and duties of the Department of Public Health under the provisions of sections 14-227a, 14-227c, 15-140u and 21a-283 shall be transferred to the Division of Scientific Services within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.

(P.A. 83-66, S. 1, 2; P.A. 99-218, S. 1, 16; P.A. 11-51, S. 134; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1, S. 240.)

History: P.A. 99-218 replaced former Subsec. (a) which had created the Forensic Science Laboratory with new provisions creating the Division of Scientific Services, made remaining part of former Subsec. (a) a new Subsec. (b), specified in Subsec. (b) that the division would be available without charge to certain agencies, redesignated former Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (c), provided in Subsec. (c) for the commissioner or a deputy commissioner to head the division, and added Subsec. (d) which specified the transfer of certain Department of Public Health powers and duties to the division, effective July 1, 1999; pursuant to P.A. 11-51, “Commissioner of Public Safety” and “Department of Public Safety” were changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection” and “Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection”, respectively, effective July 1, 2011; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1 amended Subsec. (c) to substitute “director” for “deputy commissioner” and add provision re director to be in the unclassified service and serve at the pleasure of commissioner, effective June 15, 2012.

Notation

See Sec. 29-7h re duties concerning firearms evidence databank.

See Secs. 54-102g to 54-102l, inclusive, re duties concerning DNA analysis and establishment and maintenance of DNA databank.