L.A. County Coroner's lab gets $1.6M upgrade

LOS ANGELES The coroner's office investigates thousands of deaths each year, and department officials say it's one of the biggest coroner offices in the world. The department receives about 100 requests a year for other DNA testing, including paternity tests.

Coroner officials say the upgraded lab should be able to handle those tests which could also generate additional revenue for the department.

The coroner's office has a backlog of cases. A grand jury report released June 30 expressed concern that the backlog could threaten the lab's accreditation.

City News Service contributed to this story.