Head if forensic sciences department leaving for Georgia

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA - The director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences is resigning in the middle of a budget shortage to take a job in Georgia. <br> <br> In a letter of resignation, Doctor J.C. Downs said he will leave September first. <br> <br> Deputy Director Taylor Noggle said Wednesday that Downs will become a forensic pathologist for the state of Georgia, based in Savannah. <br> <br> Downs&#39; resignation came within days after he notified law enforcement officials of cutbacks the department is planning to take October first due to a budget shortage of $2.2 million. The proposed cutbacks include closing regional labs, reducing staff and discontinuing transporting bodies to crime labs. <br> <br> The forensics director is appointed by the attorney general. Downs has held the post four years. He previously worked in the department&#39;s Mobile lab.