Wisconsin's Attorney General wants more money in the state budget to help deal with a growing backlog of DNA testing. Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager says the backlog of DNA evidence in need of testing at state crime labs continues to grow. She says the state is seeing an increase in the number of cases and samples that need to be tested. To help address the backlog, Lautenschlager is proposing a nearly $1.9 million increase as part of her next biennial budget. That money would create a DNA analysis unit at the Wausau crime lab, add a night shift at the Madison DNA lab, and add 12 additional lab techs around the state. Lautenschlager believes those resources will help the state to meet the current projected backlog.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, Lautenschlager's opponent in the Democratic primary, says the Attorney General is trying too late to fix a problem that's been ignored.