Government Laboratory

The Forensic Science Division of the Government Laboratory provides a
specialist scientific service to the criminal justice system in Hong Kong.
The division's services, which have been accredited by the American
Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board
(ASCLD/LAB), are rendered mainly to government departments dealing
with law and order, although private sector and subvented organisations
can also make use of them on a cost-recovery basis. The division aims to
provide an impartial, accurate and efficient service to its clients.

Sixty of the division's 150 staff are professional forensic scientists
operating in two broad groups covering seven specialist areas. One
group, which covers controlled drugs and toxicology, deals with a high
volume of cases including illicit drugs analysis in cases of possession,
trafficking and manufacturing, possession of controlled pharmaceutical
preparations, analytical toxicology in certain death enquiries and blood
alcohol determination in suspected drink-driving offences.

The other group covers a wide range of physical and biochemical
evidence in cases including homicide, arson, robbery, fraud, sexual
assault and traffic accidents. A comprehensive 24-hour scene of crime
attendance service is also in operation.

The Biochemical Sciences Sections continued development of the new
DNA-related PCR/STR techniques, introducing these into casework on a
limited basis in the middle of the year. Compilation of databases continues
as does development of further systems. It is hoped that the PCR
technique will form the basis of all biochemical casework by the middle
of 1998.

The Chemical Science Section devoted a great deal of time to the
investigation of the tragic Garley Building fire, in November 1996,
culminating in evidence being given to the Commission of Inquiry in June
1997. It was one of several large multi-fatality fires investigated by the
section during the year.

By reorganising into three parallel units in 1996, the turnover time for the
Controlled Drugs Section improved considerably during 1997. Heroin
remained the major drug of abuse, but the number of cases involving
methylamphetamine in the form of 'ice' continued to increase (676
compared with 580 in 1996) as did cases involving 'ecstasy' (59
compared with 43 in 1996) and the benzodiazepine drugs midazolam
(1 449 compared with 1 313 in 1996) and estazolam (47 cases compared
with 19 in 1996).

At the beginning of the year, the responsibility for the control of human
resources and quality management was placed under a new section
covering the entire laboratory. The section's brief includes responsibility
for all quality assurance trials and proficiency tests of staff in the Forensic
Science Division. This testing forms an essential part of the overall
procedures required as part of the accreditation process. It also helps to
ensure the achievement of high standards of excellence that the division
sets itself and which are essential for an impartial and efficient service to
the public of Hong Kong.

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