UNH To Launch Unique National Crime Scene Center & Training Program

WEST HAVEN, CT — The University of New Haven (UNH) Thursday announced plans to develop a national center for crime scene training to be financed through $2 million in federal funds. The Center will be housed within the UNH Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science, said UNH President Lawrence J. DeNardis, Ph.D. DeNardis; Dr. Albert B. Harper, director of the UNH Henry Lee Institute; Dr. Henry C. Lee; and Congresswoman Rosa Delauro, D-3, joined in announcing UNH has been formally notified by the U.S. Department of Justice that it will receive funding to develop and operate the UNH National Crime Scene Training Center. In a statement prior to a press conference announcement Thursday, Dr. Harper said "The UNH Lee Institute will be the only academic resource in the country where law enforcement and other professionals will be able to receive specialized crime scene training according to uniform standards." The funding, said Dr. DeNardis, will enable development of the center and training of law enforcement officials – from police investigators and laboratory scientists to prosecutors – with the most advanced technology and real life learning available." A former U. S. Congressman, Dr. DeNardis was directly involved in securing the funding. It was included in nation's annual appropriations package and was reviewed by the Justice Department and a panel of experts selected by the Justice Department. Dr. Harper said the federal money will be used to develop the center, purchase equipment and for a small number of additional personnel. He said said UNH was successful in gaining congressional and Bush administration approval for the program because, "despite rapid scientific advancement, especially in DNA technology, many cases are not solved or are lost in court due to problems with the evidence. These problems can relate to recognition, collection, and preservation of evidence, and lack of appropriate knowledge, process and procedure at the crime scene. There is a critical need for a state-of-the-art national crime scene technology center." The center will be open to all law enforcement officials and forensic scientists, ranging from police officers and laboratory scientists to prosecutors and judges. In a report to federal officials, UNH said the benefits of the UNH National Crime Scene Training Center will include standardized training of crime laboratory personnel, law enforcement agents, and state's attorneys who will be given standardized training in the range of disciplines associated with crime material as it progresses from discovery, through testing, to presentation as evidence in court. "This will result, said the UNH statement, "in more successful investigations, enhanced efficiency of testing relevant evidence, fewer courtroom challenges, improved public perception of the criminal justice system and overall lower costs related to enhanced accuracy and efficiencies." Said Dr. DeNardis, at Thursday's press conference, "At this difficult time for our nation, when the people of America are absorbed in the details of Washington Area sniper cases, one of the most critical issues is the evidence associated with these horrible assaults and murders. At UNH, our forensic scientists are most acutely aware of controversies associated with evidence in these and other major crimes that affect the tranquility and safety of our society. "Dr. Henry C. Lee and other forensic specialists and criminal investigators associated with our Lee Institute of Forensic Science and our School of Public Safety & Professional Studies have determined that outcomes of many important cases have been altered by improper or uninformed management of evidence – sometimes aggravated by poor communication or the absence of cross training among professionals. In some cases, vital evidence is not found or collected at all," said President DeNardis "We aim to help change this and believe that the UNH National Crime Training Center can be a new contributor to effective criminal justice in America," he said. Among in public officials and UNH leaders invited to the conference, were Acting Chief State's Attorney Chris Morano; CT Commissioner of Public Safety Arthur Spada; UNH Forensic Science Department chairman, Dr. Howard Harris; Lee Institute chairman, Robert Alvine; UNH School of Public Safety & Professional Studies Dean Thomas Johnson; the Office Chief of Training for the Connecticut Public Defender's Office, Catherine Meyers; executive director of Court Support Services, William H. Carbone; Milford State's Attorney Mary Galvin; Commissioner of Corrections John Armstrong; the chief court administrator, Joseph Pellegrino; chairman of the Legislative Public Safety Committee, Rep. Steve Dargan; chairman of the legislative Judiciary Committee, Rep, Michael Lawlor; Mayor of West Haven H. Richard Borer, Jr.; State Medical Examiner Dr. Wayne Carver; the director of scientific services for the Department of Public Safety – Major Timothy Palmbach; and members of State Crime Lab staff – Elaine Pagliaro, Ken Zercie, Bob O'Brien and Debbie Messina. The UNH Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science was established at the West haven campus in 1997. Its focuses are the conduct of forensics research, public education programs and training of professionals in criminal justice and related fields. In 2001, the Institute – with the involvement of school, public safety and political leaders – launched a national web site devoted to school safety. Each year,the Institute conducts the national Arnold Markle Conference on criminal justice issues, attracting law enforcement professionals from throughout the country. The Institute is named for Dr. Henry C. Lee, the nation's most prominent criminologist and forensic scientist. Dr. Lee, retired as commissioner of the state Department of Public Safety and director of the state's Forensic Science Laboratory in Meriden, joined the University of New Haven in 1975 as an associate professor. Lee is the first person to be honored with the Dr. Henry C. Lee Endowed Chair in Forensic Science at UNH and he continues to teach a course in the field at the West Haven campus.