The mystery of the crowded crime lab has been solved. Gov. John Kasich signed a
capital budget Monday which includes $11.9 million for a state crime lab at
Bowling Green State University.
On Tuesday, Ohio Attorney General Michael DeWine was at BGSU to plot out details for
the new Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation lab somewhere on
campus.
"It’s a great opportunity for us and a great opportunity for the state of
Ohio," said BGSU President Dr. Mary Ellen Mazey.
The decision to build a crime lab at BGSU is the latest chapter in the story of the
BCII lab in Bowling Green. A few years ago, then attorney general Marc Dann
threatened to close the lab and move it to Toledo, angering some local law
enforcement officials.
When DeWine ran for the state office, he promised to keep the lab in Bowling Green.
However, concerns were raised again when the DNA portion of the lab was moved to
the BCII lab in Richfield last year.
"This should remove any lingering question about the state of Ohio’s commitment
to have a lab in Bowling Green," DeWine said Tuesday.
The crime lab, he said, is the "heart and soul" of the state attorney
general’s office. The BCII lab supports local law enforcement in solving crimes
– much like the TV drama "CSI," DeWine said.
"Whatever ‘CSI’ does, we do it better," the attorney general said. However,
there is one difference. "We don’t always do it in an hour."
The location of the crime lab has yet to be determined, though four sites were
reportedly discussed Tuesday by DeWine and BGSU officials. DeWine reportedly
preferred the location on the northwest side of campus over one at Enterprise
and Ridge streets, and two other possible sites in the BGSU Research Park east
of Interstate 75.
It is believed the $11.9 million from the state is enough to pay for the entire
project, with much of the lab equipment being moved from the existing BCII site.

Tom Stickrath, BCII superintendent, explained that the move to BGSU became necessary
as the crime lab continued to outgrow its site in Greenwood Centre, on East
Wooster Street in Bowling Green.
"Clearly, we’re out of space now," Stickrath said Tuesday.
"We want to roll," DeWine said of the lab timeline.
The partnership with BGSU made sense, since it would allow for more space,
integration of BGSU students in the lab work, and expansion of the science and
criminal justice programs at the university, officials said. The teamwork is
expected to pay off for taxpayers, law enforcement and BGSU students.
DeWine said the campus lab should make BGSU the "premier institution" for
science and forensic majors.
Mazey said BGSU will study the possibility of expanding its science, statistics, and
criminal justice programs to make the most out of the crime lab setting.
"We’ll be developing Ohio’s future workforce," she said.
DeWine explained the scope of the state three crime labs, located in Bowling Green,
Richfield and London. The workload continues to grow, and the turnaround times
on evidence continue to improve, he said.
Demands on DNA testing continue to increase, with close to 130 cold cases being
solved a month due to the ability to hook into the national DNA data base.
"So much of law enforcement today has to do with science," he said.
DNA evidence will continue to be sent to the state lab in Richfield, since it is
equipped with the costly robotic system for testing, Stickrath said.