LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Almost a year ago the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) released a statement that their star DNA analyst, Yvonne "Missy" Woods, was under criminal investigation after an internal process discovered anomalies in her work.
We now know the 29-year veteran's misconduct has impacted more than 800 cases. That number could grow as a team continues to review paper casefiles from 1994 through 2008.
The South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation began its criminal investigation in November 2023. Once that investigation is complete, the district attorney's office in Jefferson County will decide if charges will be filed against Woods.
South Dakota is still investigating one year later, according to the DA's office, but prosecutors have started to review materials.
Woods was a star analyst at CBI. She built a reputation as the gold standard in DNA testing. According to a report from CBI, an intern found problems in her work during a research project in September 2023. CBI opened an internal investigation in early October and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation began helping with the internal investigation in November.
Woods retired in lieu of termination on November 6, 2023.
In early March 2024, CBI announced the findings of an internal affairs investigation which found she manipulated data in the DNA testing process, posting incomplete test results in some cases.
This discovery put her work over the course of 29 years into question.
According to their chief deputy, the office of the Colorado State Public Defender said they know more about which cases are involved one year later but it's been challenging to get information about whether Woods' actions could've changed the results at trial for cases where someone has already been convicted.
"That's part of the issue is that the discovery process only happens when there's an attorney and a lot of these folks are in prison and don't have an attorney anymore. The representation has been terminated," said Zachary Brown, Chief Deputy at Colorado State Public Defender's Office.
Brown said most of their cases aren't open meaning many of their clients went to prison. He wished he knew more about the impacts than they do one year later.
"It is awful for them to have to go through this and that's all that we're trying to do is help the folks that were impacted," he said.
Colorado's criminal justice system will be tested as people look to challenge their convictions based on Woods' misconduct.
In June, prosecutors in Boulder County agreed to a plea agreement in a triple homicide case after learning Woods had manipulated data in the case. This trial was one of the first tests to see how her conduct will impact the criminal justice system. Citing the investigation into Woods, prosecutors and defense attorneys entered a plea agreement to sentence the defendant to 42 years in prison. Instead of spending the rest of his life behind bars, the defendant will most likely be eligible for parole after 31.5 years of his sentence.
In August, an attorney for a man in prison on a life sentence for murder filed a motion to overturn his conviction now that Woods is under criminal investigation.
Colorado plans to spend more than $7 million for retesting of evidence and potential reimbursements for post-conviction review and retrial costs.
The internal investigation discovered Woods was accused of data manipulation in 2018. The CBI director at the time said he doesn't remember anyone telling him about a disaster in the making.
Following the discovery of Woods' actions in 2023, CBI Director Chris Schaefer said the agency is meticulously reviewing all of its testing protocols. They are auditing the results of all current and previous DNA scientists to ensure the integrity of the lab, according to Schaefer.