Forensic Upgrade: Carla Walker Act Funds $10M Annually for Advanced DNA Testing in Cold Cases and Victim ID

The newly proposed Carla Walker Act sets up two competitive grant programs, authorizing $10 million annually from 2025 through 2029, dedicated to boosting forensic science capabilities across the country. The core mission is to help state, tribal, and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and medical examiners use advanced whole genome sequencing technology—a much deeper level of DNA analysis—to solve cold cases and identify human remains when standard testing methods like CODIS hit a dead end. This is a targeted investment aimed squarely at bringing cutting-edge genetic tools into the criminal justice system.

The Upgrade: When Standard DNA Testing Isn't Enough

Think of this bill as funding the forensic science equivalent of upgrading from a flip phone to a smartphone. The grants are specifically designed for cases where the routine DNA analysis used by law enforcement (often through the CODIS database) doesn’t generate any leads. This typically happens in older cold cases or when dealing with highly degraded samples. Under this act, $5 million per year is authorized to fund the actual advanced analysis, allowing labs to use whole genome sequencing to check at least 100,000 genetic markers. This highly detailed profile can then be used with forensic genealogical databases—the same kind used by private companies, but under strict Department of Justice (DOJ) guidelines—to generate investigative leads or identify unknown victims.

For example, if a medical examiner has unidentified remains from decades ago, and standard DNA tests fail, this grant money could pay for the specific, expensive genealogical testing needed to find potential family matches. The bill specifies that this money must go to the analysis itself; you can’t use it to hire staff, pay for training, or cover travel expenses. This tight restriction means agencies will still need to find operational funds elsewhere to support the staff who run the new programs, which could be a practical challenge for smaller jurisdictions.

Buying the Right Tools and Outsourcing the Work

The second part of the funding, another $5 million annually, is dedicated solely to purchasing the necessary equipment, supplies, and chemicals needed to run these advanced forensic tests. This equipment grant is available to publicly funded and accredited forensic labs and medical examiner offices. This is a smart move, recognizing that you can’t run new tests without the right machinery, and validation costs are high when bringing new science into court.

One interesting provision is that grant recipients can outsource this advanced testing to private labs. Crucially, if the private lab isn't accredited yet, they must legally promise the Attorney General they will achieve accreditation within two years of starting the grant work. This allows the program to scale up quickly by utilizing private sector capacity, but it also means that for up to two years, some critical forensic work might be done by labs that haven't fully met the industry's quality standards yet. The bill attempts to mitigate this by requiring all work to adhere strictly to the DOJ's policy on forensic genealogical DNA analysis.

Accountability and the Fine Print

This legislation isn't just handing out checks; it requires serious accountability. Any entity receiving grant money must provide a detailed annual report to the Attorney General. This report must track exactly how many cases were tested, what kind of testing was done, whether it led to an arrest or identification, and the average turnaround time for results. This mandatory reporting ensures that we can actually measure the program’s effectiveness and see if this specialized funding is truly helping to solve cases and bring closure to families.

Additionally, the Attorney General is required to produce a comprehensive report for Congress within two years, detailing how best to integrate these genetic genealogy technologies into public forensic labs and what future funding levels will be needed. This shows the bill is trying to set up a long-term strategy, not just a temporary fix. Overall, the Carla Walker Act represents a significant, targeted investment in modernizing forensic science, focusing on high-tech solutions for the toughest cases while building in strong measures for transparency and oversight.