Community service is the hallmark of the California State University (CSU) system, and the Human Identification (HID) Laboratory at CSU Fresno is engaged in innovative service learning programs throughout California’s central valley and beyond.

Members of the HID Laboratory fulfill their mission of community service through regular consultation with local and regional law enforcement, attorneys, and other criminal justice officials on casework involving the collection, preservation, and testing of DNA evidence in criminal and missing persons cases, as well as “best practices” for forensic science testing laboratories. The HID Laboratory is actively engaged in applied forensic research, and is available to assist local and regional agencies in the evaluation of emerging techniques in human identification. The HID Laboratory has also offered assistance to foreign law enforcement personnel working to identify missing persons in Central America.

There are approximately 16,000 murders that occur annually in the United States, only about 63% of which are ever closed. That means that every day in this country 16 murders occur that will never be solved. The HID Laboratory is working to develop the Violent Crimes Case Review Project (VCCRP). This project offers student interns, primarily specially trained graduate students studying forensic science, to perform comprehensive and systematic reviews of homicide cases under the direction of law enforcement personnel. The interns can determine if the case is open or closed and the status of all suspects, summarize the case, and prepare it for entry into investigative databases. The purpose of the VCCRP is to identify cases that may benefit from advances in forensic technology – specifically DNA testing.

Please contact Dr. Miller if you would like more information on the programs highlighted above, or if you would like to propose other forensically-related community service projects.