On the Job 

Ohio’s criminal justice community and the field of forensic science both stand to gain with the opening of the Attorney General’s new Bureau of Criminal Investigation facility in Northwest Ohio later this year.

The $12 million facility, now nearing completion on Bowling Green State University’s main campus, is set to open late this fall and will replace BCI’s current space in a Bowling Green retail area. The Ohio Attorney General’s Center for the Future of Forensic Science, a research and training center planned in coordination with BGSU, will also be housed on campus.
 
“The research and training center is a phenomenal opportunity for BCI and the university,” Attorney General Mike DeWine said. “Not only will it benefit law enforcement, prosecutors, and ultimately the people of our state, but it will help advance the field of forensic science in general. That’s a very exciting prospect for Ohio.”
 
A director will lead the center, while a distinguished scholar will direct the center’s research projects. Both will be university employees and work closely with BCI staff on projects such as the makeup and effect of synthetic drugs, the sensitivity of DNA testing, and enhanced testing instrumentation, to name a few possibilities.
 
A perfect combination
 
BCI Superintendent Tom Stickrath said the research and training center will complement and enhance his staff’s day-to-day work in applied science.
 
“Our scientists’ central mission is to analyze evidence and help ensure that justice is delivered in a swift and accurate fashion. Because we will be located on a university campus, we want to take advantage of the opportunity to access academic and research talent,” Stickrath said. “This center is specifically dedicated to research and training to keep BCI at the forefront of forensic science and technology.”
 
Michael Ogawa, BGSU’s vice president for research and economic development, expects BCI’s presence on campus to benefit students and faculty through internships, research opportunities, and other collaborations. The university plans to offer forensic science specializations for biological sciences, chemistry, and criminal justice majors beginning this fall and a forensic science master’s degree program starting
in 2015.
 
A national priority
 
Both Ogawa and Stickrath noted the National Academy of Sciences’ call to strengthen forensic science research and the opportunity it presents for the BCI-BGSU endeavor.
 
“The research and training center combines both the academic and the professional side, and it addresses a national need,” Ogawa said. “This is a process of the maturation of the forensic science field as a whole, and having our students involved in that is quite exciting to us as a university and can really benefit the field.”
 
In addition to allocating funds for the BCI facility’s construction, Ohio legislators set aside $600,000 to fund the AG’s Center for the Future of Forensic Science this fiscal year. National research grants will also be sought.