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Please see our “Did You Know?” section toward the end of this issue.
Again dominating the headlines of stories involving the use of DNA evidence is the topic of the expansion of DNA collection – especially since the FBI, starting this month, will begin collecting DNA samples of those awaiting trial and detained immigrants. In Virginia the law requiring DNA samples from people arrested for violent crimes reached a milestone earlier this year with its 500th "hit."
And in Oklahoma the House voted 73-18 to expand the database to include DNA from all illegal aliens and anyone convicted of a host of misdemeanor crimes.
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 NewsLaw Enforcement Agencies To Collect More DNA According to a New York Times report, US federal and state law enforcement agencies are expanding their DNA collection to include those who are arrested or detained, not only those who are convicted. The move is raising concerns over the privacy of minor offenders.
Previously, law enforcement agencies only collected samples from those who were convicted. Starting this month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with 15 states, will begin collecting DNA samples of those awaiting trial, and detained immigrants.
The FBI expects to see its DNA database growth rate increase from 80,000 new entries a year to 1.2 million by 2012. The government agency already has 6.7 million DNA profiles in its database. Source: www.redorbit.com
500th DNA violent-crime hit recordedEnforcement of a Virginia law requiring DNA samples from people arrested for violent crimes reached a milestone earlier this year with its 500th "hit."
Virginia has been collecting DNA from felons since the early 1990s, and in 2003, it became the second state to require DNA samples from arrestees, thus far collecting more than 40,500.
"There is little doubt that this statute has improved the commonwealth's ability not only to identify suspects and prosecute crimes but also to prevent certain individuals from committing new crimes," said Peter Marone, the department director. Source: www.timesdispatch.com
Oklahoma - More criminals in Oklahoma would have their DNA put into a federal database under a bill named after a University of Oklahoma ballet student raped and killed in 1996.
The Oklahoma House on Monday voted 73-18 to expand the database to include DNA from all illegal aliens and anyone convicted of a host of misdemeanor crimes. Under current law, DNA is taken only from convicted felons and those required to register as sex offenders. Source: www.newson6.com
New and Ongoing Stories Involving the Use of DNA Evidence Ohio - It’s a Cleveland mystery as gruesome as Jack the Ripper, as tantalizing as "The Silence of the Lambs." The Torso Murders - seven men and five women killed and mutilated. Their skulls, limbs and genitalia scatter red along the Cuyahoga River.
No one, not even crime-fighting legend Eliot Ness - then Cleveland's safety director - could solve the case. But Thursday, 65 years after the last two bodies were found, police and forensic investigators pushed forward with scientific tools that neither Ness nor the murderer could have fathomed.
The Cuyahoga County coroner's office in coming days will begin testing five taunting postcards Ness received in the years following the murders, searching for DNA under 2-cent stamps that have held tight to the mailings for six decades.
Forensic scientist Linda Luke, who works at the coroner's office, will be hunting for DNA. She said during an interview Thursday that the tedious job likely will begin with boiling water. She will use steam and a scalpel as she tries to remove the stamps without damaging the cards. Source: blog.cleveland.com
Wisconsin - A tobacco chewing habit led to charges against two La Crosse men accused of stealing a safe that was bolted to the floor of a town of Campbell tavern. Source: ww.chicagotribune.com
Florida - The prosecution wrapped up its case Monday afternoon in the first-degree trial of Larry Eargle, following nearly four full days of testimony from investigators, experts and other witnesses.
On Monday, a crime lab analyst with the Jacksonville Regional Crime Laboratory took the witness stand to testify about his scientific findings based on DNA samples collected from the victim’s T-shirt and car.
“He matched the major contributor,” Hitt said, of the defendant, when it came to mixed samples revealing more than one DNA profile. Source: www.ocala.com
Indiana - More than eight months after a New Haven robbery led to a pursuit and fatal crash, police Friday arrested the last of the three suspects in the crime with the help of DNA evidence.
Cardia L. Senter, 30, and two companions tied up and robbed an elderly couple and a 10-year-old girl at their Bedford Drive home early Aug. 7, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Senter’s DNA matched samples taken from a black knit cap, the documents said. Senter faces preliminary charges of robbery, resisting law enforcement, carrying a handgun without a license and three counts of criminal confinement. Source: www.journalgazette.net
Florida - The Broward Sheriff's Office says DNA testing has helped investigators arrest a suspect in a 1996 Pompano Beach rape case. Ohio - Police say a burglary last December at a downtown Cincinnati barber shop has been solved, thanks to DNA testing. Source: www.wcpo.com
Wisconsin - A Grand Chute woman who chased a burglar and bit his hand got a big enough piece of him to provide a DNA match that led to his arrest, authorities say.
Scott D. Cross, 23, was charged in Outagamie County Court with burglary and bail jumping, both as a repeat offender. Police collected enough blood and skin from her mouth to process a DNA sample, which led to Cross. Source: www.postcrescent.com
Pennsylvania - A man is charged with burglarizing the VFW in Spring Grove, York County, in February 2007. Southwestern Regional Police tracked Russell Gerald Flick through DNA on a beverage bottle left at the crime scene. Source: www.wgal.com
Washington - A forensic scientist says DNA evidence matches that of a convicted felon on trial for rape. David Webster is accused of raping a cellmate inside the Franklin County Jail. Michael Dornan examined the alleged victim's rape kit, and developed a DNA profile he says matched Webster's profile on the Washington State Patrol's convicted felon data base. Source: www.kndo.com
Florida - It took 25 years, but an arrest has been made in the brutal 1984 rape and murder of a 32-year DeSoto County woman. According to the DeSoto County Sheriff's Office, James Glennwood Clark, 50, is being held without bond at the Sarasota County Jail after DNA collected from his office matched samples taken from the home of the murder victim. Source: www.myfoxtampabay.com
Minnesota - A Brooklyn Park man faces criminal charges years after he allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted a woman at a Minneapolis nightclub after his DNA connected him to the case. Duncan Nyanaro Osoro, 25, faces first-degree assault, sexual conduct, and kidnapping. Source: kstp.com
Texas - A man has been charged with kidnapping and sexual assault after police say DNA evidence linked him to an October rape, according to an arrest affidavit.
Police say Tyrone Robinson, 32, took a woman by force from the 400 block of East Fourth Street about 2 a.m on Oct. 14, forced her into his car, drove her to a hotel north of downtown and repeatedly raped her, the affidavit said. Source: www.statesman.com
International Australia - Ben McDevitt, who runs Australia's national DNA database, wants to expand the number of profiles in it by taking samples from people convicted of lesser crimes, and those who are "charged but not convicted," reported the Canberra Times.
Source: www.findingdulcinea.com
Did you know?Whole genome amplification and real-time PCR in forensic casework WGA (Whole Genome Amplification) in forensic genetics can eliminate the technical limitations arising from low amounts of genomic DNA (gDNA). However, it has not been used to date because any amplification bias generated may complicate the interpretation of results. Our aim in this paper was to assess the applicability of MDA to forensic SNP genotyping by performing a comparative analysis of genomic and amplified DNA samples. A 26-SNPs TaqMan panel specifically designed for low copy number (LCN) and/or severely degraded genomic DNA was typed on 100 genomic as well as amplified DNA samples. Results: Aliquots containing 1, 0.1 and 0.01ng each of 100 DNA samples were typed for a 26-SNPs panel. For more information please go to and a link to a provisional pdf file of the report, please go to:
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
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