Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE - The University of Wisconsin-Platteville has approval from the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents and the Wisconsin Building Commission to break ground on a forensic laboratory house, the first of its kind in the midwest. The house will be built on the UWP Pioneer Farm and used for UWP criminal justice students and community law enforcement agents to learn about forensic investigation in a realistic, hands-on environment.

The house will also create opportunities for UWP students in the building construction management program. The Wisconsin Building Commission granted UWP permission to have the forensic laboratory house built by building construction management students as part of their final senior project. BCM students will continue to learn after the house is complete by using monitoring equipment to measure humidity levels and other relevant data throughout the year.

"The best part about this new facility is that it will increase practical application for both criminal justice and BCM students, and other individuals who use it," said Aric Dutelle, UWP criminal justice lecturer. "They will apply what they are learning in the classroom to realistic situations, going beyond the textbook."

After BCM students design and build the three-bedroom, 1,500 square-foot house, it will be set up like an actual residence. One of the bedrooms will be equipped with closed-circuit television so instructors can observe and record how students investigate burglaries, homicides and other domestic-based crimes. According to Dutelle, the television will allow instructors to monitor and control different crime scene scenarios. Instructors can observe students and provide more effective feedback.

"The community will also benefit from the forensic research house because local law enforcement agencies will be able to use the house for night crime scene training," said Dutelle.

Doug McKinley, Platteville chief of police, wrote a letter in support of the proposed construction of the forensic laboratory house. "I believe the house is going to be a valuable training resource, especially in our part of the state where quality law enforcement facilities are few and far between," said McKinley.

"UWP students, Southwest Wisconsin Technical College Law Enforcement Academy attendees and area law enforcement personnel will benefit by using the forensic research house for scenario-based training to simulate actual crime scenes. The facility will add a new level of realism to our training," McKinley added.

The house will be built by the fall of 2010 with construction beginning this summer. For more information, contact Dutelle at (608) 342-1596 or dutellea@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Aric Dutelle, UWP criminal justice department, (608) 342-1596, dutellea@uwplatt.edu Written by: Anne Killian, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, killiana@uwplatt.edu