Crime lab backlog slows Franklin murder investigation
By Jennie Runevitch
WTHT-TV (Indianapolis, Indiana)
November 17, 2006
Franklin - In the nearly four months since someone murdered 26-year-old Chynna Dickus and her ten-year-old stepson, Blake, Franklin police have been dedicated to finding out just what happened inside their suburban home and who committed the crime. Still, Franklin Police Chief John Borges explained, they don't have answers.
"Our focus has remained very broad. We haven't been able to find that one particular focal point on the investigation such as a suspect," Chief Borges said. "But it's very difficult to do when we just haven't received the right break yet."
Police say they have hundreds of items of evidence, but that's actually part of the problem. The lag time in solving the case is linked to the state police lab processing that evidence.
"There is an overwhelming amount and it's going to take time for them to do. It's going to take time for any lab to do that if we were their only priority," Chief Borges said.
The Dickus murders are not the only priority. For years, the state police lab has dealt with a delay in analyzing evidence. It's in need of more staff, more equipment and more space. The full case backlog now stands at more than 2600. Finding the murderer from Franklin is among them.
Lab results right now take an average of nine months to complete. The lab's biology section commander, Paul Misner, said they have a plan to turn that around. "Our goal is to reduce that to a 30 to 45 day turnaround time," Misner said.
To do that, state police will hire more technicians and move into a new lab downtown in January. But the backlog, Misner said, won't go away overnight. "Just moving in itself is going to probably make the situation worse."
They'll have to shut down and recalibrate instruments, meaning more time before results go out more quickly. In the meantime, the Franklin case goes unsolved.
"They're giving this case priority," Chief Borges said. "They're doing everything within their power to help us get to the bottom of who committed this crime."
Police say sorting and testing evidence is never a quick process, like what's often shown on television. But they admit the backlog is tough to overcome. Also, at the lab, cases with court dates take precedence over unsolved murders.
In hopes of generating new leads, Chynna Dickus' mother has set up a reward fund and website in her daughter's honor.