A former forensic scientist at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation is accused of manipulating DNA evidence over her 29-year career, while an investigation into 652 cases she worked found she took shortcuts and deviated from testing protocols in “an unprecedented breach of trust,” officials said.
Following a six-month probe, authorities released a stunning report on March 8 that claimed Yvonne “Missy” Woods willfully manipulated investigative data and, in some instances, posted incomplete DNA test results as part of criminal evidence she handled between 2008 and 2023.
One of the notable cases she reportedly worked on was the infamous “Colorado Hammer Killer” case, a series of murders that occurred in the Denver metropolitan area between January and July 1984, which remained unsolved for more than a decade before the killer was identified.
The scandal raised doubts about all of Woods’ work, prompting state investigators to look at other cases dating back to 1994 when she first joined the agency.
The findings of the investigation triggered a rush in district attorney’s offices across the state to find any affected cases in their jurisdictions as more than 1,000 criminal convictions might have been won on questionable evidence.
The Office of the Colorado State Public Defender, which represented the overwhelming majority of defendants in the criminal cases, said it was blindsided by the report after finding out about the investigation the same day in a press release, calling the agency’s lack of transparency “extremely concerning.”
“One of the most pressing questions is whether any person has been wrongfully convicted as a result of misconduct,” said a statement from the office, according to the Colorado Sun. “CBI and other law enforcement should be immediately forthcoming with the public and the people directly impacted by the misconduct and possible crimes committed by the DNA analysts they…
Read the full article here
