We still don鈥檛 know what killed Rock County Jail inmate Nicole Lemke last February. We do know that the delay in determining her cause of death is due to a backlog at a state crime lab where toxicology tests are processed for criminal investigations.
The delayed investigation into Lemke鈥檚 death is a stark local reminder of the need to adequately staff state crime labs, so criminal investigations stay on track.
Some good news did come out last week. In an annual report released Thursday, the Wisconsin Department of Justice said its state crime labs stepped up turnaround time for DNA analysis last year, taking an average of 84 days to process a DNA test in 2022, compared to 128 days in 2021.
While that鈥檚 encouraging, there鈥檚 still such a significant backlog that Rock County authorities have been waiting for more than six months for the results of a toxicology test from a state crime lab. Only once there鈥檚 an official cause of death can it be determined whether anyone should be criminally charged.
Lemke, 29, was found face down and unresponsive in her jail cell in the early morning hours of Feb. 2 and was later pronounced dead.
It鈥檚 possible that no one is criminally responsible for her death. But we鈥檇 be remiss to not question whether 鈥 had that toxicology test come back more quickly 鈥 someone might by now be identified as implicit.
A former jail inmate, Amanda Buri, has been charged with bringing drugs into the jail the night Lemke died. Buri was charged on Feb. 15 with manufacturing or delivering fentanyl, possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance on or near a jail, manufacturing or delivering cocaine, and delivering illegal articles to an inmate. She later posted bond and then, after failing to report to scheduled court hearings, was additionally charged with several counts of bail jumping. A warrant is now out for her arrest in two states after she failed to show up for an Aug. 3 court date.
There鈥檚 been a push for years to better staff the state crime labs, to alleviate evidence processing backlogs. The issue fueled heated debate in the 2022 race for state attorney general and resulted this summer in the continuation of funding for three forensic analyst positions in the 2023-25 state biennial budget, as well as funding for more DNA analysts and for more crime scene response unit members.
The three toxicologist positions will be funded through the first year of the 2023-25 biennium with federal COVID-19 rescue dollars. Those federal funds run out in the second year of the biennium; the dollars included in the state budget ensure that the three jobs remain filled through 2025.
This is fewer than the continuation of four positions that Gov. Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Justice had requested through 2025, in a department that has a total of about 190 employees.
A 2022 Associated Press story noted that this isn鈥檛 a new fight 鈥 state Attorney General Josh Kaul鈥檚 staffing requests for the state crime labs weren鈥檛 fully funded in prior state budgets, and delays in processing evidence have grown in recent years.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no doubt that the crime labs in Wisconsin are critical to public safety as a prosecutor,鈥 Fond du Lac District Attorney Eric Toney said in a joint appearance in June with Kaul, as reported by the AP, as the two pushed for more staff. Their joint plea came as the state Legislature began considering Gov. Evers鈥 proposed 2023-25 biennial budget.
Kaul had prevailed in November 2022 in the attorney general鈥檚 race against Toney; months later, the two appeared together.
鈥淭he less the investments that are made in the justice system, including the crime labs, the longer delays you are going to have, and that slows down the justice process and, again, it impacts not just the labs, it impacts the system as a whole,鈥 Kaul said during that joint appearance.
鈥淲e use those resources across the state on everything from first-offense drunk driving to intentional homicides to drug overdoses,鈥 Toney said.
In justice deferred in Lemke鈥檚 death, we鈥檙e seeing locally what happens when resources are shorted for a critical statewide office like the state crime labs.
The governor, legislators and Wisconsin Department of Justice need to work together to find a permanent solution so Lemke, her loved ones and others like them across the state more quickly find closure and those responsible for crimes are more quickly prosecuted.