Atlanta Police Department Forensic Laboratory Improvements

As a critical first step in establishing an independent crime lab, CLD analyzed service needs and generated a space program with design criteria for the Atlanta Police Department. CLD also developed a phasing plan in anticipation of the need to actualize the facility with respect to available funding.

Subsequently, when funding was in place, CLD validated the program and designed the fit-out of Phase 1. This phase included narcotics and firearms investigation labs on the third floor of the Public Safety Headquarters Annex building. Challenges included designing and building an indoor shooting range capable of handling up to .50 caliber weapons and a similarly rated gun tank. Beyond these, other programmatic elements included a gun vault, NIBIN workstation, firearms and toolmarks lab, ballistics lab, narcotics lab, and offices. The crime lab performs analysis on everything from fingerprints, illegal drug verification, to ballistic testing.