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Please see our “Did You Know?” section toward the end of this issue. Over the past two weeks, New York City has introduced a Suspect Evidence Collection Kit, which will allow law enforcement to collect evidence on the scene.
The state of Maryland has reached it’s 1000th DNA database hit, with the first 500 hits spanning a period of 12 years and the second 500 less than 2 years.
And in Tennessee the new law requiring every person arrested for a violent crime to provide a DNA sample is already showing positive results.
In addition to these stories you will find brief summaries of new and ongoing cases involving the use of DNA analysis. Every story is followed by a link to its original source, which you can follow for more details.
In The NewsNew York City has announced a new forensic tool in sexual assault cases.
Source: www.newsday.comState Police Notch the 1,000th 'Hit' in DNA Database
A Maryland State Police forensics specialist recently matched evidence from a slaying more than 15 years ago to a DNA sample in the state's swelling database of convicted felons, giving investigators a fresh lead in a case that had gone cold years ago.
It was the state's 1,000th "hit" in comparing crime scene DNA to samples taken from inmates, and a milestone that pleasantly surprised state lawmakers and police. The DNA database was established in 1994, and 12 years passed before it produced 500 hits. As the database grew, the next 500 hits came in less than two years. State scientists say the combined 14-year total of 1,000 hits in Maryland could double again in the next year.
Source: www.washingtonpost.comNew DNA Law Already Proving Valuable
A new state law requires every person arrested for a violent crime to provide a DNA sample in hopes that investigators can link suspects to other cases, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said it is already working.
"There are some cases that they didn't have a clue as to who committed the crime until we told them," said TBI Forensic Scientist Connie Howard.
very year, 20 percent of homicides in Tennessee go unsolved. There are still 113 open homicide cases that are unsolved from last year.
Police said criminals are often repeat offenders, which is why people arrested in violent crimes in Tennessee are now required to give a DNA sample. Source: www.wsmv.com
New and Ongoing Stories Involving the Use of DNA EvidenceColorado - Scott J. Sylvia was arrested Monday after a DNA test linked him to the rape of a 16-year-old girl in a library parking lot. Investigators say Sylvia, 25, followed the girl to her car, forced her in at knife-point and assaulted her July 7. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation expedited a DNA investigation. Sylvia has a criminal record for violent assaults, robbery and drug-related crimes, said Lone Tree Police Chief Stephen Hasler.
Source: www.denverpost.com
Colorado - Prosecutors cleared JonBenet Ramsey's parents and brother Wednesday in the 1996 killing of the 6-year-old beauty queen, saying they were "deeply sorry" for putting the family under a cloud of suspicion that hung heavy for more than a decade. New DNA tests, which focus on skin cells left behind from a mere touch, point to a mysterious outsider. New "touch DNA" tests on skin cells that were left behind on JonBenet's long underwear point to an "unexplained third party" and not a member of the family. Source: http://news.yahoo.com Pennsylvania - A man wanted in the rape of an 18-year-old girl on her way to work in Northeast Philadelphia last summer has been arrested in New Jersey. Officers from the Special Victims Unit and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force arrested Lionel Rivera in Lawrenceville on Friday, a week after police appealed for the public's help, saying a DNA sample had linked the 23-year-old man to the attack.
Source: www.philly.com
Kentucky - DNA left on a bandanna near a robbery scene led to the arrest of a western Kentucky man in what police say could become the first time genetic evidence has been used to solve a robbery case in the state. Travis V. Wilson, 27, of Madisonville, was charged Wednesday with first-degree robbery stemming from the July 25, 2007, incident. He also was charged with first-degree wanton endangerment and fleeing police. The Central Forensic Lab in Frankfort confirmed a DNA sample taken from a blue bandanna worn by the suspect during the robbery matched a sample provided by Wilson
Source: www.kentucky.com
Missouri - A 33-year-old man who has already been in prison 18 years for a 1990 rape in Kansas City has been sentenced to 18 more years for another rape earlier that year. Last year investigators matched Harry McNeal Jr.'s DNA with evidence from the rape of a woman at her Kansas City home while her 6-year-old son slept beside her. The woman testified that she's still traumatized by the attack and can't sleep without a gun or knife in the room.
Source: www.fortmilltimes.com
South Carolina - Authorities say a 14-year-old boy has been charged in the death and sexual assault of an 8-year-old Greenville County girl whose body was found in an abandoned mobile home. Sheriff's deputy Michael Hildebrand said the teenager was charged Wednesday with murder and first-degree criminal sexual conduct. Hildebrand said officials filed charges in part because of DNA testing results. His name hasn't been released.
Source: www.foxnews.com
Washington - A 46-year old inmate who languished on death row for more than 20 years was freed Wednesday after DNA tests called into question his murder conviction. Paul Gregory House was sentenced to death in 1986 for the rape and murder of Carolyne Muncey, a housewife and mother in the southern state of Tennessee. DNA testing was not available at the time of the crime, but genetic tests performed since his conviction failed to determine conclusively that House was the perpetrator of the crime.
Source: afp.google.com
Wisconsin. - A suspect in a high-profile stabbing death that frightened Madison residents was ordered jailed Tuesday on $1 million bail. University of Wisconsin-Madison dropout Adam Peterson wore a sleeveless garment given to inmates considered at risk of attempting suicide during his initial court appearance Tuesday. Peterson, 20, was charged last week with first-degree intentional homicide in the Jan. 28 death of Joel Marino, a Madison man fatally stabbed in his home in broad daylight. Police say his DNA matches a sample taken from the 4-inch knife used to stab Marino in the chest and abdomen.
Source: www.startribune.com
Did You Know?Tiny fishing reel gets DNA researchers out of a tangle
The world's smallest fishing reel has been used to wind up DNA strands without damaging them. The microdevice was designed to let geneticists more precisely locate specific genes and identify genetic disorders. Scientists use gene markers, which bind to specific DNA regions or chromosomes, to determine the presence of certain genetic disorders. But because DNA molecules tend to tangle, it can be difficult to see exactly where the markers have attached. Existing DNA-handling methods to stretch out those tangles involve chemically altering the two ends of each strand and carefully pulling them apart, but the fragile strands are prone to breakages, says Kyohei Terao at Kyoto University, Japan. Now, Terao's team has developed minuscule hooks and bobbins that mimic the way a fishing reel winds line onto a spool as a safer way to manipulate DNA. These are fabricated from a polymer called SU-8 photoresist that doesn't bind to and damage the DNA.
For more information please go to: technology.newscientist.com
The DNA Informant is a free bi-weekly email newsletter, published by DNA Labs International. DNA Labs International is a private, ISO 17025 Accredited, Forensic Serology and DNA Identity Testing Laboratory, founded in 2004 by a Board Certified Fellow in Molecular Biology with over two decades of experience in Forensic Serology and DNA Analysis in United States Crime Labs. Our primary mission is to help our clients identify criminals within their jurisdiction by providing timely, accurate and cost effective DNA testing results. To do this we created an organization based on industry best practices from over 20 State Crime Labs around the United States. We are located in Deerfield Beach, Florida, just minutes from the Fort Lauderdale airport. DNA Labs International’s services are now available for individual cases and outsourcing contracts. Please keep us in mind as you start to consider your outsourcing needs, regular and rush cases and DNA case review. Editor: Karen Daurie |
