COBB FED UP WITH CASE BACKLOG

Cobb County officials are so fed up with a backlog in drug cases caused by
an overworked State Crime Lab that they're willing to float the state a
grant to extra chemists who will work Cobb cases only.

The GBI Crime Laboratory, long labeled a bottleneck in the judicial system
because of the months it often takes to examine evidence, welcomes the help.

"We're certainly not turning around as fast as we'd like to, or as fast as
the prosecutorial community wants us to," said GBI Director Buddy Nix.

Cobb County District Attorney Ben Smith Jr. said he and other county
officials can't solve the statewide problem, but they can reduce the
county's jail population -- and save money -- by helping the crime lab focus
on Cobb.

The grant is the leading proposal to emerge from a committee of court and
law enforcement officials, headed by Smith and Sheriff Bill Hutson, who also
have thought about building a separate, county-run crime lab. The grant has
yet to be endorsed by the Cobb County Commission, which would have to
approve the spending.

But the venture has proceeded far enough for the GBI to submit a cost
estimate for two forensic scientists and an assistant, all of whom would
work Cobb drug cases exclusively.

The price tag would be $175,000 the first year, including new equipment and
overtime to make a quick impact. Afterward, the price would be drop to
$125,000 a year.

According to Lt. Col. Lynda Coker, chief investigator for the Cobb sheriff's
department, the county jail population has risen 60 percent in the past 18
months. The jail is nearing capacity, despite a tripling of its capacity due
to an expansion that was finished last spring.

Smith estimates that about 150 drug suspects are constantly awaiting trial
in the Cobb County jail. At $32 a day, that adds up to roughly $1.7 million
a year. "It's a result of the inability of the crime lab to process the dope
fast enough," said Smith, 39, who was appointed to his job last month and
faces re-election later this year.

GBI officials said it would not be an embarrassment to accept a gift from
Cobb, though it would be unusual. "I applaud them for their out-of-the box
thinking," Nix said. "More resources are needed for forensics nationwide.
What we're experiencing in Georgia parallels what's being experienced across
the country."

If given the money, the crime lab also would promise that the grant wouldn't
deprive Cobb County residents of the assistance they already are receiving
through state taxes.

The state crime lab identifies drugs nabbed from police searches, analyzes
fingerprints and fiber evidence, performs DNA and ballistic tests and does
other work associated with criminal prosecution. It can take six months or
more for the lab to analyze a stash of crack cocaine, although the GBI says
more than half its evidence is processed within 30 days.

Nix said the state has tried to reduce the lab's backlog. He credited the
General Assembly and Gov. Zell Miller for an infusion of millions of dollars
for laboratory construction and increased salaries to attract quality
forensic scientists.

The pay hikes will take effect in October, soon after a groundbreaking for
the state's third new lab in three years.

Despite the progress, Nix cannot promise a dramatic reversal of the backlog.
That's because of the exploding demand for forensic work, which Nix
attributed to:

More drug cases;

Better-trained police and a resulting increase in scientific detective work;

Tougher DUI laws and a growing number of drunk-driving suspects who seek
trials rather than pleading guilty;

And lawyers who have become more inclined to introduce scientific evidence
since the O.J. Simpson trials