LNP Leader David Crisafulli pledges extra staff for DNA case reviews after testing bungle

Court cases suffering long delays because of Queensland’s DNA lab disaster will be fast-tracked under a Liberal National Party government that has pledged $12m to hire more prosecutorial staff.

Shandee Blackburn’mother Vicki Blackburn, Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli and Dr Kirsty Wright during a media conference in Mackay. Picture: Liam Kidston.

Court cases suffering long delays because of Queensland’s DNA lab disaster will be fast-tracked under a Liberal National Party government that has pledged $12m to hire more prosecutorial staff.

LNP leader David Crisafulli said the funding package would ensure the thousands of criminal cases affected by botched testing at the DNA laboratory, and stuck waiting to be reviewed, would be prepared for court earlier.

“We know murderers and rapists could be walking free, and at the current pace of review, they could be given this freedom for decades to come,” he said.

Testing delays at the government-run DNA lab are wreaking havoc on Queensland’s criminal justice system, with “100-plus” murder and manslaughter cases trapped in lower courts until forensic evidence can be analysed.

The lab is struggling to keep up with current demands as it implements recommendations from two commissions of inquiry and conducts a historical review of more than 40,000 major crime cases embroiled in a testing fiasco dating back to 2007.

Catastrophic testing problems at the laboratory were first discovered by forensic biologist Kirsty Wright on The Australian’s podcast series Shandee’s Story, which investigated the 2013 killing of Mackay woman Shandee Blackburn.

Shandee’s mother, Vicki Blackburn, praised Mr Crisafulli’s commitment to boosting staff numbers in the DPP.

“There’s one group of people who are the most important, and that’s the victims – they’re still waiting,” she said.

“Today is an announcement, and it’s the first time in 11 years I have seen a comprehensive plan that has the ability to deliver that justice to those people.”

Dr Wright, who the LNP would appoint to oversee the restructure of the troubled laboratory if elected, said funding for an extra 20 staff in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions was the “final piece of the puzzle”.

“Queensland hasn’t had a properly functioning forensic DNA lab for 15 years, and that means that the criminal justice system has also been compromised,” she said.

“Those 41,000 cases represents 15 years of major crime cases, so that’s 15 years’ worth of cases that the DPP have to review,” she said.

“They’re real people, and this is their last chance of justice so that review has to be done meticulously to give that victim a fair go; that extra funding will definitely speed up the process.”

The Labor government in Aug­ust promoted prosecutor Greg Cummings to a new deputy role in the DPP to focus on cases requiring DNA retesting.

Active cases before the court are currently being prioritised, as well as matters no longer before the courts but for which DNA results may have been called into question because of botched testing.