A Colorado judge sentenced Yvonne “Missy” Woods, the former Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) forensic analyst at the center of a sprawling DNA scandal, to 10 years in prison on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, after authorities said her manipulation of DNA data raised questions about the validity of hundreds of criminal cases.
State District Judge Andrew Poland handed down the sentence in Golden, Colorado. Woods had faced between eight and 16 years under the plea agreement she reached in June. Under that deal, she admitted guilt on four felonies — perjury, forgery, attempting to influence a public servant and committing a cybercrime — while prosecutors dropped dozens of additional charges. The sentences on her other three felony convictions run concurrently, and she also received three years of mandatory parole.
Woods told the court she knew an apology would not undo the harm she had caused.
“For many years I was entrusted with evidence that could have profound consequences for defendants, victims, families and the courts. I failed that responsibility. I am deeply sorry for that failure,” she said.
The collapse of confidence in Woods’ work has moved through Colorado courtrooms since 2023, including questions about the 1996 killing of JonBenét Ramsey. Boulder police and the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office say their review found that Woods’ misconduct did not affect evidence in the Ramsey investigation. Her documented criminal misconduct occurred between 2008 and 2023, and authorities have not said she personally handled evidence in that case.
Where the Ramsey Investigation Stands
The Ramsey case itself, however, is moving. Boulder authorities say investigators are reviewing evidence to determine whether it can benefit from newer forensic methods and are exploring advanced DNA testing capabilities at independent outside laboratories. Detectives have conducted new and repeat interviews, collected new evidence and tested or retested material in an effort to develop leads, according to the police department.
Denver Reopens 13 Sexual Assault Cases
The consequences are still being tallied. Denver authorities said in September that 13 previously closed sexual assault cases were reopened after DNA evidence tied to Woods’ work was retested. Eleven of those cases produced DNA profiles eligible for entry into CODIS, and six generated possible investigative leads.
Investigators found flawed work in homicide, sexual assault, robbery and other prosecutions, authorities said. Hundreds of files had to be re-examined, and at least one murder conviction was thrown out: Michael Clark walked out of prison in 2025 after his lawyers argued Woods had mishandled DNA evidence in his case, and prosecutors said they would seek to retry him. Two homicide defendants received lighter sentences in plea deals than they might have faced at trial because prosecutors feared Woods’ involvement would lead to acquittals. Other convictions have been challenged in courts across the state, and state officials have said the response to her actions could end up costing more than $11 million.
Warnings Inside the State Crime Lab
The case against Woods started with an internal review: an intern at the bureau found information missing from a 2018 case she had handled, touching off an investigation in September 2023. Woods was forced to retire on November 6, 2023, capping a nearly 30-year career in which she had been the state’s go-to expert in DNA analysis. The bureau publicly announced its investigation in March 2024.
Authorities said she altered data to hide tampering, deleted records showing she had not troubleshot problems in the testing process and failed to document tests fully in case files. An arrest affidavit states that Woods, during questioning, at one point offered speed as an explanation, saying she had altered data so she could close out cases faster. The bureau also found that in multiple cases she manipulated results involving male DNA — deleting chart results that should have shown it, ignoring it when present in a sample, or reporting incorrectly that there was none — acts officials considered intentional.
A CBI news release on December 17, 2024, announced that the review of her entire body of work was finished, with 1,003 cases identified as “impacted” by the alleged mishandling and manipulation of evidence. “The comprehensive review of all the cases involving the nearly 30-year career of Yvonne ‘Missy’ Woods has been completed,” the agency said. Because of the irregularities and possible dishonesty they uncovered, officials at the state level said everything she had touched was suspect.
A 94-page internal affairs report, unsealed in the summer of 2024 by 20th Judicial District Court Judge Patrick Butler, showed that alarms had sounded far earlier. Employees had spent years telling supervisors that Woods was cutting corners, and a worker questioned her testing of evidence as early as 2014. One colleague reported watching Woods discard fingernail clippings she believed had been collected as criminal evidence, but said she stayed quiet because Woods enjoyed favored status at the agency. Senior supervisors told internal affairs investigators that the agency should have done more to protect the public.
In 2018, Woods was temporarily pulled off DNA casework after being accused of data manipulation. Her bosses suspended her from criminal cases and ordered her into professional counseling. The CBI director was never told about that episode, nor was leadership at the Colorado Department of Public Safety, and the bureau has opened a separate investigation into how it handled the report. Woods told investigators she worked up to 40 hours of overtime a month to earn more money as a single mother putting her child through school.