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The Tennessee Conservative [By Adelia Kirchner] –
The latest Davidson County Grand Jury report calls the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) out for delays in DNA testing for cases of sexual abuse.
After reviewing hundreds of criminal justice cases, the jury closed out its second-quarter session earlier this month.
In an April – June 2025 session report, the jury listed out specific concerns regarding current crime statistics in Nashville.
The jury report notes that while a majority of the cases heard dealt with non-violent theft, they still heard a large number of violent crime cases involving murder, aggravated assault, domestic assault, sex crimes and child abuse cases.
One of the specific concerns listed in the report was in regard to major delays in DNA processing and rape kit testing.
“As echoed by past Grand Juries and witnessed firsthand by this one, too many sex abuse cases take far too long to get DNA evidence processed by a forensic crime lab,” the report reads. “It feels beyond superficial to yet again call for this to be fixed in a Grand Jury report, but it cannot be left unmentioned.”
Davidson County is currently the only Tennessee county that has its own exclusive crime lab.
It was previously reported to the jury that even when lab work is contracted out to a third-party company, results must still be processed by the MNPD Criminal Investigative Division (CID) before being considered valid.
“When the lab outsources to a third-party company, our scientists must still review the results and perform CODIS uploads,” MNPD said. “Those labs cannot enter DNA into the national database.”
According to the jury report, this added process can tack on months to a request, leaving victims of sexual assault, including children, waiting for justice even longer in a case that may already be several years old at that point.
“In a very high number of instances, we are seeing cases that are taking 2-3 years, on average, to receive DNA results,” the report reads.
While witnesses and presenters have deemed this lengthy timeframe to be “common,” the report states that the jury finds it important “not to infer this as being ‘normal.’”
“The longer somebody has to wait to see results and see where it is at in the process, it kind of puts everything on pause,” Lorraine McGuire, Vice President of Community Relations for the Sexual Assault Center, told WKRN.
McGuire also referenced the case of 34-year-old mother Eliza Fletcher, emphasizing exactly what is at stake with such lengthy DNA testing delays.
In 2022, Fletcher was abducted and murdered in Memphis, Tennessee.
Fletcher’s killer was later connected to a 2021 rape through DNA testing.
“Had the rape kit been tested sooner and a warrant issued, he may not have had the opportunity to murder Eliza Fletcher,” said McGuire.
Approximately 800+ cases are still backlogged in the MNPD CID crime lab.
“We realize that understaffing and turnover plague the ability of the CID to conduct this crucial work,” the jury report states. “The Metropolitan Police Department must develop a plan to address this issue and the Mayor and Metropolitan Council must approve the additional resources to resolve this issue.”
MNPD released a statement in response, noting the complexity of DNA testing and explaining that five new crime lab scientists are currently being trained and will be certified by the end of the year.
This new addition will bring the total number of qualified DNA interpretation analysts for the Nashville crime lab up to eight.
“Of the 800 cases referenced, about half are currently in the testing process,” wrote MNPD. “They are being worked by either our crime lab or have been outsourced.”
MNPD stated that the remaining cases may involve known offenders, suspects who are already deceased and/or instances where prosecution has been declined.
According to MNPD all testing kits are processed from oldest to newest unless a kit is flagged by the Special Victims Division for expedited testing.
The department also stated that the recent jury report “conflated” the responsibilities of different MNPD units (ex. CID, Crime Scene Investigation or CSI and the forensic biology lab).
Also in response, the department pointed out that the grand jury did not request that anyone from the crime lab appear or provide testimony during their most recent session.
About the Author: Adelia Kirchner is a Tennessee resident and reporter for the Tennessee Conservative. Currently the host of Subtle Rampage Podcast, she has also worked for the South Dakota State Legislature and interned for Senator Bill Hagerty’s Office in Nashville, Tennessee. You can reach Adelia at adelia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Sounds like it needs privatized.