ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Thursday, August 22, 1996              TAG: 9608220045
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C-4  EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: QUANTICO 

FBI TO BUILD NEW LAB, INCREASE FORENSIC STAFF

The FBI plans to build a new $150 million crime laboratory and increase its forensic staff to handle a growing caseload.

``The crush of forensic work we're doing and the increased stress on our resources is a problem,'' said Donald Thompson Jr., acting assistant director of the FBI lab in Northern Virginia. ``This new facility was sorely needed.''

Only one-third of the nation's 299 labs can do their own DNA testing; the rest rely on the FBI. Because of the demand, a typical wait is nine months to a year.

The new 500,000-square-foot lab will get 88 new scientists, and its $90 million annual budget will be boosted by $9 million to modernize equipment.

The FBI also plans more than $13 million in grants for state and local crime labs.

``One objective is to make state and local labs more self-sufficient,'' Thompson said. - Associated Press

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