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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAppendix AMiami -Dade County Florida Contract No. RFP 8514a Appendix A SCOPE OF SERVICES 1 Introduction The County is contracting services for outsourcing forensic casework for DNA analysis. The MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau provides forensic laboratory services for Miami -Dade County and over 30 municipal agencies. There are almost 250 cases processed each month by the Forensic Biology Section. The County will award a contract to a Primary Contractor and a Secondary Contractor, in the order of their ranking as determined by their overall scores pursuant to RFP-8514. In situations where the Primary Contractor cannot respond in a timely manner or cannot fulfill its contractual obligations or when the workload warrants, as determined by the MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau, the County reserves the right to go to the Secondary • Contractor. The Contractor shall not subcontract the laboratory services provided herein. 2 Qualifications a. Minimum Qualifications Required The Contractor shall be accredited in nuclear DNA testing by either the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD-LAB) or Forensic Quality Services (FOS) for the duration of the contract. b. Preferred Experience The Contractor and key personnel assigned to this project should have experience in outsourced DNA casework for federal and/or state law enforcement agencies. 3 Tasks 1. The MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau will submit samples to the Contractor as specific evidence from a case. The samples will be marked with the MDPD case number, item number and MDPD analyst's initials. The items will have been screened and/or tested for the presence of possible biological material by the MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau. The specimens will primarily be in the form of swabs or cuttings. 2. The Contractor will perform the extraction and quantitation of the DNA. The DNA extracts and amplified DNA shall bee retained by. the Contractor in accordance with the Contractor's Analytical Protocol. Remaining evidence materials shall be returned to the MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau via an insured overnight ceurier to be approved by MDPD. The cost.of return shipping shall be at the expense of the Contractor. 3. The Contractor shall analyze the samples using the Applied Biosystems Genetic Analyzer 310, 3100, 3130, or 3130XL. Ali samples shall be' analyzed using Applied Biosystems Profiler Plus and CoFiler kits. The analysis shall be produced using the °GeneScan° 3.1 (or latest version), and aGenoTyper 2.1 (or later version). Genetyper peaks shall be Labeled with both -allele number and peak height. All runs require the use of appropriate controls, including, extraction or reagent blanks, as well as positive and negative amplification controls. • 4. In the event the obtained DNA profile produces a subsequent database match, the Contractor shall provide DNA analysis of the subject standard to confirm the Combined DNA Index System (CQDIS) database identification and issue a match report as indicated in #3 of Section 2.4. Notwithstanding the contract term, the Contractor shall provide confirmation DNA analysis as stipulatedabove beyond the, termination, cancellation, or expiration of any agreement as a result of this solicitation. 5. The Contractor shall provide testimony in any subsequent legal proceedings related to cases for which analysis services were provided. The cost of travel, expert witness fees or -duplication of data due to subpoena by the prosecution or defense, or due to compelled appearance or production of records Miami -Dade County, Florida Contract No. RFP 8514a Appendix A shall be the expense of the Contractor. Notwithstanding the contract term, the Contractor shall provide testimony as stipulated above beyond the termination, cancellation, or expiration of any agreement as a result of this solicitation. 6. The Contractor shall not transfer or sub -contract the DNA samples or casework under this solicitation to any other laboratory. All such work shall be completed at the Contractor's facility. 4 Deliverables and Reporting Requirements 1. The Contractor shall submit to MDPD all electronic data produced from the analysis of samples on CD- ROM and the data shall be organized such that MDPD may immediately re -analyze any of the data. DNA profiles determined by the Contractor to meet the Guidelines of Acceptance of DNA Data into the CODIS shall be submitted to MDPD in pre -common message format (CMF) hardcopy Excel spreadsheet files and as CMF files on CD-ROM. 2. Sample numbering in the CMF file shall adhere to MDPD's current numbering format. The Contractor shall provide on CD-ROM a separate spreadsheet listing the Contractor's numbers assigned to specific MDPD case samples during the analysis in order to correlate the two designations. A list of the samples analyzed in each batch shall also be included. There shalt be sufficient documentation in spreadsheet format to allow MDPD to easily locate the Controls, Knowns and Questioned samples in each case. MDPD will upload the DNA profiles to CODIS following internal review of the data to ensure it meets quality guidelines. 3. The Contractonshalf issue a signed court -ready report to the MDPD Crime Laboratory that includes the MDPD case number, Contractor's case number, items tested, analysis results, conclusions with statistics when appropriate, and DNA profile results from each sample. The court -ready report shall be well organized and comprehensible. 4. Analysis of batches of evidence samples shall be completed by the Contractor within 60 days of receipt and the DNA profile data delivered to MDPD via an insured overnight courier to be approved by MDPD. Batches will consist of 50-100 evidence samples. All remaining evidence samples are to be delivered by an insured overnight courier to MDPD Crime Laboratory within 60 days after the DNA profile data has been reviewed by the MDPD. The cost of printing, CD-ROM and retum shipping shall be at the expense of the Contractor. 5 Other Requirements 1. Protocols employed by the Contractor for DNA testing shall meet the Quality Assurance Standards for Forensic DNA Testing Laboratories issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and compiled by the DNA Advisory Board (DAB). The Contractor shall also adhere to the National DNA index System DNA Acceptance Standards. 2. Acceptable analyzed data shall fall within the Relative Fluorescence Units (RFU) range determined by the Contractor from its own validation studies. The size standard used must be GeneScan ROX-500 for Profiler Plus and either GeneScan ROX-500 or GeneScan ROX-350 for CoFiler. An internal lane standard shall be run in each sample lane and a minimum of 3 allelic ladders per 48 injections shall be run, a minimum of one ladder every 16 samples. The analysis shall not be considered complete until allele data for all of the thirteen CODIS core Loci have been generated and deemed satisfactory by the MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau. 3. The Analytical Protocol used by the Contractor and all data generated shall adhere to the specifications as outlined by the Quality Assurance Standards for Forensic DNA Testing Laboratories issued by the FBI. Miami -Dade County, Florida Contract No. RAP 85I9a Appendix A 4. The Contractor shall maintain the chain -of -custody record on each sample submitted by MDPD. Documentation of chain -of -custody shall comply with the accrediting organization (ASCLD-LAB and/or FQS) as to protect the samples from deleterious change or loss and shall include a documented history of each transfer during the analytical process. Additional documentation associated with the laboratory analyses shall be maintained by the Contractor. 5. The Contractor shall provide immediate notification to the MDPD Crime Laboratory Bureau in the event that there is a change to the Contractor's ability to meet the minimum qualifications required herein. Failure to maintain accreditation will be sufficient grounds for the County to terminate any agreement as a result of this solicitation. 6. The Contractor shall participate in an external proficiency -testing program from a test provider that has been approved by the ASCLD-LAB. The Contractor shalt successfully complete the proficiency tests, and provide to MDPD a summary of any proficiency test results completed during the agreement period. An error on a proficiency test may be grounds for immediate termination of any agreement as a result of this solicitation. 7. The Contractor shall permit an inspection of its laboratory facility and an audit by MDPD personnel to verify compliance with ail requirements and any national quality standards. The Contractor shall allow MDPD personnel to access all areas of the laboratory in which STR DNA casework is performed. The County, at its sole discretion reserves the right to conduct unannounced on -site visits/inspections at any time to ensure continued compliance. 8. The Contractor shall comply with federal grant requirements that will fund this project (Forensic DNA Backlog Reduction Program) and must have a prepared environmental assessment as defined by the Council on Environmental Quality's Regulations for implementing the Procedural Provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSi) must be obtained by the Contractor in order to satisfy the MDPD laboratory's reporting requirements to the federal granting agency. 9. Payment by the County will not be made on any samples that are not analyzed according to the specifications herein. 10. The Contractor shall not provide details of services provided to MDPD in product literature or advertising without written approval from the MDPD.