The Consolidated Forensic Laboratory (CFL) will be a 351,000 gross square-foot / 287,000 net square-foot building where the District of Columbia will consolidate the functions of public safety forensic science and public health into a single world-class, state-of-the-art facility. The new consolidated facility will co-locate portions of three departments: the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) forensic lab, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), and the Department of Health (DOH) public health lab. The location will be at 4th and School Streets, SW, in Ward 6, on the existing site of MPD's First District Station.

The CFL will improve the District's public safety operations. The lab will also enhance the District's ability to respond to future public safety and health challenges by adding new laboratories with DNA and Bio-Safety Level 3 lab abilities. The existing District facilities are generally in poor condition, undersized and inflexible to accommodate changing technology. The District’s forensic science and investigative work currently depends heavily on outside sources including federal and neighboring jurisdiction states and counties. This creates chain of custody problems and lengthy delays in getting results.

Given these mission-critical components and their respected functions, the CFL will play a vital role in advancing and improving our public safety support, homeland security and our crime investigation capabilities. The CFL will offer a reliable facility to our law enforcement agencies to provide quality and timely information as well as a broad range of new safety and health services to our residents.

Read more about the Consolidated Forensic Laboratory Project*.