Former Colorado forensic scientist sentenced to 10 years for altering DNA reports
A former Colorado forensic scientist has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after admitting to altering DNA data and issuing false or misleading laboratory reports in dozens of criminal cases, according to prosecutors. Her manipulation of laboratory data affected hundreds of additional cases, including cases involving women and children who had reported sexual assault.
Yvonne “Missy” Woods, 66, was sentenced Tuesday by District Court Judge Andrew Poland for criminal conduct committed between 2008 and 2023 while working for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Woods worked for the state crime lab from 1994 until November 2023.
Woods pleaded guilty in June to cybercrime, first-degree perjury, attempting to influence a public servant and forgery. She received 10 years on the cybercrime charge, with the six-year sentences for perjury and attempting to influence a public servant, as well as the three-year forgery sentence, to run concurrently.
The plea consolidated 102 original criminal counts and required Woods to accept responsibility for the full scope of the conduct.
The investigation began in September 2023, when a CBI intern found missing DNA data in a sample Woods had processed in 2018. A broader review found similar alterations and deletions, leading to an independent criminal investigation by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation.
Investigators identified 52 lab reports containing statements by Woods that were untrue. In a 53rd case, Woods made statements that were technically accurate but appeared intended to discourage a detective from acting on the results.
In most of the charged conduct, Woods reported that DNA was not present when it had been detected. Prosecutors said the altered reports stopped many cases during the earliest stages of investigation, before the evidence could be subjected to additional testing, comparison or identification.
Forty-one of the cases underlying the charges did not result in criminal charges against a suspect. Thirty-two involved women and children who had reported sexual assault. In those cases, Woods deleted values indicating male DNA was present before issuing reports that said no male DNA had been found.
Twelve false reports were connected to cases in which criminal charges were filed. Three went to trial, resulting in one conviction and two acquittals. Woods pleaded guilty to perjury based on false testimony she gave in the trial which resulted in a first-degree murder conviction.
The investigation did not find evidence that Woods produced false DNA identifications, false comparisons or false positive results.
“Her responsibility was straightforward: perform the scientific work accurately and honestly, follow the procedures governing that work, report the results, and allow others in the criminal justice system to determine their significance,” the DA said in a statement. “She failed to do that.”
A restitution hearing is set for Nov. 12. The review of affected cases and related litigation remains ongoing.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
