MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul today released the 2024 Annual Report for the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Forensic Sciences (DFS) crime laboratories.
“The failure of the state legislature to include any additional positions for the crime labs in the 2025-27 state budget was a significant disappointment,” said AG Kaul. “The commitment of our team at the labs to staying on the cutting edge of forensic science is evident, and it’s crucial for the legislature to be a partner to the labs.”
2024 annual report:
- DFS is increasing its capabilities for detecting lower concentrations of drugs and drugs that are newly synthesized or modified compounds that mimic controlled substances and attempt to avoid detection by traditional testing methods.
- The number of Wisconsin State Crime Laboratories (WSCL) cases in which evidence tested positive for methamphetamine is again on the rise. In 2024, there were 1,760 of these cases, the highest since 2017, when there was a spike of these cases to 1,696.
- The Wausau Crime Laboratory acquired and installed a new firing range in order to expand services to include a Firearms and Toolmarks Unit, which became fully operational in May 2025.
- DOJ continues to call for additional state investment in the crime labs. DOJ requested 19 additional positions for DFS in the 2025-27 biennial budget, but that budget did not include any additional positions for DFS.
About DFS
The Division of Forensic Sciences (DFS) was established as an independent division of Wisconsin DOJ in 2019, though the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory (WSCL) was originally established in 1947. DFS employs over 190 people—including forensic scientists, technicians, evidence specialists, and crime scene response professionals—and offers impartial forensic analysis in the following areas: toxicology, drug identification, biology/DNA analysis, DNA database, trace evidence analysis, firearms examination, toolmark examination, latent print examination, footwear analysis, ten print comparison, forensic imaging, and video analysis. Samples sent to DFS for testing are not always able to be collected under ideal conditions, and forensic scientists are trained to use rigorously tested methods to produce accurate findings relevant to a criminal investigation, prepare a report of conclusions, and provide expert testimony in criminal proceedings. DFS also staffs on-call Crime Scene Response Units, located at each laboratory, to assist law enforcement at major crime scenes by processing the crime scene and maintaining evidence integrity.
