‘Extremely Concerning’: Colorado Forensic Scientist Accused of Misconduct After Alleged Mishandling DNA Evidence In 652 Cases
A former forensic scientist at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation is accused of manipulating DNA evidence over her 29-year career, while an investigation into 652 cases she worked found she took shortcuts and deviated from testing protocols in “an unprecedented breach of trust,” officials said.
Following a six-month probe, authorities released a stunning report on March 8 that claimed Yvonne “Missy” Woods willfully manipulated investigative data and, in some instances, posted incomplete DNA test results as part of criminal evidence she handled between 2008 and 2023.
One of the notable cases she reportedly worked on was the infamous “Colorado Hammer Killer” case, a series of murders that occurred in the Denver metropolitan area between January and July 1984, which remained unsolved for more than a decade before the killer was identified.
The scandal raised doubts about all of Woods’ work, prompting state investigators to look at other cases dating back to 1994 when she first joined the agency.
The findings of the investigation triggered a rush in district attorney’s offices across the state to find any affected cases in their jurisdictions as more than 1,000 criminal convictions might have been won on questionable evidence.
The Office of the Colorado State Public Defender, which represented the overwhelming majority of defendants in the criminal cases, said it was blindsided by the report after finding out about the investigation the same day in a press release, calling the agency’s lack of transparency “extremely concerning.”
“One of the most pressing questions is whether any person has been wrongfully convicted as a result of misconduct,” said a statement from the office, according to the Colorado Sun. “CBI and other law enforcement should be immediately forthcoming with the public and the people directly impacted by the misconduct and possible crimes committed by the DNA analysts they employed.”
Woods came on the radar last September after an internal review found anomalies in some of the cases she had worked on.
Woods abruptly resigned in November when superiors confronted her about the findings, leading to chaos within the agency as investigators launched a broader criminal probe late last year that remains ongoing.
Earlier, officials mentioned that they would have to reexamine 3,000 DNA samples, which would cost $1,000 each. This is nearly as many tests as the state usually performs in an entire year, totaling about 3,600.
The state has already set aside $7.5 million to reexamine all the DNA samples involving Woods, including funds to launch a massive review of the related convictions and potential retrials.
The public defender’s office suggested that all the criminal cases would probably need to be reopened due to the alleged misconduct, although officials have not yet identified them.
The overall number of questionable cases could grow as investigators continue to pore over a mountain of DNA testing done by Woods, with a flood of convictions at stake due to the potential of misleading evidence.
So far, the investigation has not found that Woods faked DNA matches or created phony DNA profiles. Instead, she deleted and changed data in the case files, tampered with DNA test results, and did not follow standard testing procedures, the report said.
Woods also failed to conduct additional testing to back up her results, as required by lab policies.
Woods has denied the allegations through her attorney, Ryan Brackley, who said she never did anything to intentionally compromise the cases she touched.
“To the extent that the findings of the internal investigation calls into questions the rest of her work over 29 years with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Woods will continue to cooperate with law enforcement to preserve the integrity of her work that resulted in true and just criminal justice findings — whether arrests, convictions or exonerations,” Brackley said in a statement, according to the Colorado Sun.
The Bureau said it is conducting a full review of all its DNA analysts “to ensure the accuracy and completeness of its entire catalog of records.”
During their investigation into Woods, the CBI also discovered potential manipulation of DNA testing data by an analyst working at the Northern Regional Forensic Laboratory, employed by the Weld County Sheriff’s Office.