SHELTON, Wash. — Evidence that used to take a month to process by crime lab investigators is now taking close to a year, said the Washington State Patrol (WSP).
According to numbers provided by WSP, in 2017 crime lab investigators processed blood evidence in driving under the influence cases in under 30 days.
By the end of 2021, the backlog was closer to a year, 355 days, according to the state’s latest figures.
“This is not a satisfying situation for anybody,” WSP spokesperson Chris Loftis said.
Loftis said the backlog should be reduced next year when a new lab, with new investigators, is scheduled to open in Federal Way.
Loftis said the state’s investigators have not been able to keep up with the increase in crime. He said WSP will look to legislators next year for more funding to help reduce the backlog.
Loftis said prosecutors can request expedited processing of evidence, reducing the wait time to two to eight weeks.
“I’m angry and upset about all of that,” said Jamie Johnston, whose father, Duane Wharton was killed in a crash on Highway 101 last week.
She said her father loved driving trucks and was a loving grandfather of 11.
Rita Lyman, 66, from Shelton was also killed in the crash.
WSP investigators determined a third driver caused the crash, and that 66-year-old man was arrested under suspicion of driving under the influence and two counts of vehicular homicide.
A state patrol drug recognition expert determined the driver was under the influence of drugs.
The driver was arrested, but a judge released him the next day.
Mason County Prosecutor Michael Dorcy decided to delay filing charges until the blood evidence can be processed. He said that could take six to nine months.
He said while he understands Johnston’s frustration, delaying filing charges is a safer strategy for getting a conviction.
His office argued the man should have been held on $150,000 bail.
The judge ordered the man released, without any bail. The driver was prohibited from driving under the influence of any medication.
Johnston said she fears the man will hurt someone else behind the wheel.
"Just, ‘You’re good to go. Continue to do what you do.’ And possibly kill other people, that’s not OK,” Johnston said.