 With more than 10 percent of its workforce out due to COVID-19, the Houston Forensic Science Center is dangerously close to having to limit its responses to crime scenes, the agencys director said Monday. Of 200 total staff, 10 have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, said Dr. Peter Stout, CEO and president of the agency, which manages Houston Police Departments forensic laboratory and crime scene unit. Another 12 are self-quarantining while they await test results. None of the exposures appear to have been transmitted through their work, Stout said. Stout said hes very worried because about one-fourth of the agencys team dedicated to crime scene investigation is out of commission due to COVID-19. Hes concerned what that might mean for the centers ability to collect evidence at murders, police-involved shootings and child deaths. Were precariously close to having to shift around so we can have any capacity to make scenes that come up, said Stout. With another positive test on Monday, a nine-person audio visual and digital unit for the agency lost its ability to collect evidence at crime scenes, Stout said. He said it is still possible for police to collect evidence, but added that putting that responsibility solely on officers creates other issues. Say HPD gets there, but an officer gets called to other things, said Stout. Theyve got other policing duties to get to, not just collecting and documenting evidence. Delays in collecting evidence could mean further backlogs in criminal cases, prosecutors said. The pandemic is stretching the criminal justice system thin, causing backlogs up and down the system, said Michael Kolenc, a spokesperson for... 