DeKalb cuts CSI response

By Megan Matteucci

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Crime scene investigators will no longer respond to burglaries and car break-ins in DeKalb County.

Budget cut-backs have forced DeKalb Police to restrict CSIs' response to only violent crimes, including homicides, rapes and armed robberies, Major James Conroy said Thursday. Officers will still respond, but there will be no crime scene investigators to collect evidence, dust for prints or look for DNA.

The police have eliminated 13 CSI slots, saving the county about $770,000. The county now has only five CSIs, Conroy said.

Last month, the County Commission cut $33.6 million from the 2011 budget, including  about $4.8 million from police.