General Information

The Colorado Springs Police Department and the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office formed a joint forensic laboratory at the time the Police Operations Center first opened in 1993. The Metro Crime Lab provides impartial and professional documentation, collection and evaluation of a variety of different types of physical evidence. The Unit includes chemists, firearms examiners, crime scene technicians, DNA analysts, and latent fingerprint examiners who provide analysis and expert courtroom testimony for a variety of forensic disciplines, including:

· Crime scene and evidence photography

· Crime scene processing and reconstruction

· Latent fingerprint processing and comparisons

· Footwear impression documentation and comparison

· Tire track impression documentation and comparison

· Firearms examinations

· Tool mark examinations and comparisons

· Shooting incident reconstruction

· Photo processing

· Blood stain pattern analysis

· Serial number restorations

· Controlled substance analysis

· Clandestine laboratory chemical analysis

As a forensic support services unit, the lab frequently provides assistance to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, the Colorado Springs Police Department, the Metro Vice, Narcotics, and

Intelligence Division, the District Attorney’s Office and various smaller agencies in the Pikes Peak Region.

A portion of the crime lab underwent remodeling in 2007, for the addition of forensic DNA analysis. Currently, the DNA section is open and has the ability to examine evidence for the presence of biological material and perform DNA typing. The DNA lab also has the capability to search nationwide for unknown suspects of local crimes based solely on their DNA profile.

In 2019, the lab partnered with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to become a NIBIN partner site and added yet another forensic service to assist law enforcement. The National Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) allows for automated interstate evaluation/comparison of firearms evidence recovered at crime scenes with the ultimate goal of linking cases involving the same firearm rapidly, providing investigators with timely information to aid in solving firearm related cases.