The Hidden Crisis: Why America’s Crime Labs Are Struggling With Evidence Backlogs
Kendall Mills, Program Director
January 2026
In the world of television procedurals, forensic evidence is processed in an hour, and provides straight-forward answers that lead to an immediate arrest. In reality, the American forensic system is facing a quiet but catastrophic crisis. From small municipal departments to massive state-run systems, publicly funded crime labs are drowning in evidence. What was once a “DNA backlog” has evolved into a systemic problem affecting every discipline, one where turnaround times often exceed a year. This delay leaves victims waiting for justice and allows cases to go cold before they even truly begin.
The Problem: A Perfect Storm of Demand and Deficits
The crisis is not due to a lack of effort from forensic scientists, but rather a “perfect storm” of three major factors:
The “Success” of DNA Testing
As public awareness of the power of DNA grows, law enforcement agencies are submitting more evidence than ever. However, this increased demand hasn’t been met with a corresponding increase in infrastructure. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), while labs have increased their efficiency, the volume of requests continues to outpace capacity. In 2020 alone, publicly funded labs faced a year-end backlog of over 710,000 requests, a number that has only climbed as technology allows us to test smaller and more complex samples.
Unfunded Mandates
In response to public outcry over untested sexual assault kits, many states have passed “mandated testing” laws. While these laws are a crucial step toward justice, they are often “unfunded mandates” – laws that require labs to test every kit in a specified (often accelerated) timeframe, without providing the additional funding or analysts needed to do the work. This forces labs to shift resources away from other crimes, like property crimes or cold case investigations, effectively moving the backlog from one shelf to another.
The Human Capital Crisis
Forensic DNA analysis is a highly specialized discipline, meaning the pipeline of qualified candidates is inherently narrow. Because of the stringent educational and certification requirements, labs are competing for a small pool of experts. Private-sector labs often offer significantly higher salaries and better work-life balance than public labs, which are notorious for high-stress environments and massive caseloads. Retaining quality analysts is difficult, and replacing them is even harder; it typically takes 6 to 12 months of intensive training before a new analyst can work a case independently. When a veteran analyst leaves, the lab doesn’t just lose a body – it loses a year of productivity.
The Solution: Bridging the Gap with Community Action
Despite billions in federal funding over the last decade, the outlook remains grim. In a 2019 report, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) made a sobering admission: they do not see the national backlog problem being resolved in the foreseeable future. With federal budgets tightening and forensic grants facing potential cuts, cold case investigations are often the first to lose their lifelines. While some states allow labs to outsource to private entities, the sheer volume of requests continues to far exceed available government resources.
You Are the Resource: How Season of Justice Intervenes
This is why Season of Justice was formed. We operate as a critical “third option” when public funds run dry. Unlike government agencies, Season of Justice is fueled exclusively by the generosity of private citizens. We do not rely on tax dollars or government grants; instead, we harness the power of a community that refuses to let these cases be forgotten.
By funding advanced DNA analysis, such as SNP analysis and forensic genetic genealogy, Season of Justice empowers investigative agencies and families to push cases forward. In an era where justice delayed is justice denied, providing the financial resources to clear these backlogs isn’t just a matter of science; it’s a matter of basic human rights for victims and their families.
The author would like to thank Amanda Hernandez with Stateline for her comprehensive reporting on this issue in the article, “Forensic crime labs are buckling as new technology increases demand.” The full piece can be accessed here.