Lowell State Police Lab Receives Accreditation

The State Police Laboratory located in Lowell has achieved an internationally renowned accreditation.

The Lowell lab, along with the labs in Fort Wayne, Evansville, and Indianapolis, have successfully met the rigorous forensic lab standards of International Standardization for Organization. This is the standard recognized by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board.

This certification validates the high standards already practiced at each state police laboratory facility. In March 2012, a detailed inspection of the four state police labs was done and 20 trained inspectors across the nation evaluated the policies, procedures, training manuals and work product of each lab.

The 176 employees in the four labs provide forensic services at no charge to federal, state, county and local agencies throughout the state. Those tests include firearms and tool mark comparisons, identification of controlled substances, trace examinations, questioned documents, fingerprints, forensic biology/DNA analysis and maintenance of the state DNA databank. Nearly 18,000 new cases for analysis came through the labs in 2011.