Key facts
- Former Colorado Bureau of Investigation analyst Yvonne Woods sentenced to 10 years in prison.
- Woods pleaded guilty to perjury, attempting to influence a public servant, forgery, and cybercrime.
- Her manipulation of DNA data affected hundreds of criminal cases, including homicides and sexual assaults.
- At least one murder conviction was overturned as a result of her misconduct.
- Concerns about her work were noted as early as 2014, and she was temporarily removed from DNA cases in 2018.
A former forensic analyst for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Yvonne “Missy” Woods, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for manipulating DNA data. The sentencing follows her guilty plea in June to charges including perjury, attempting to influence a public servant, forgery, and committing a cybercrime. Authorities stated that Woods' actions cast doubt on the validity of hundreds of criminal cases, prompting a review that led to at least one murder conviction being overturned.
Woods, who had a decades-long career before resigning in 2023, was accused of altering data to conceal tampering, deleting information showing testing failures, and not thoroughly documenting tests. During her sentencing hearing, she apologized for her failures, acknowledging the profound consequences her actions could have on defendants, victims, families, and the courts.
The investigation into Woods' misconduct began in September 2023 after an intern discovered missing information in a 2018 case. Woods reportedly told investigators that she had changed data to expedite case completion. The fallout from her misconduct has led to challenges in convictions across Colorado, with prosecutors in some homicide cases offering lesser sentences due to concerns about Woods' involvement potentially leading to acquittals.
An internal affairs report from 2024 indicated that concerns about Woods' work surfaced over a decade ago, with questions raised about her testing in 2014 and a temporary removal from DNA cases in 2018 following accusations of data manipulation. State officials estimate that addressing the consequences of Woods' actions could cost more than $11 million.