Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Legal Research Blogs -> New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library

OR PHONE (866) 635-1838 for Bankruptcy Help, (866) 635-6190 for Divorce,
(866) 635-2689 for Personal Injury or (866) 635-9402 for Criminal Defense

Find a Local Lawyer

Bankruptcy (866) 635-1838
Divorce (866) 635-6190
Personal Injury (866) 635-2689
Criminal Defense (866) 635-9402

Legal Research

: New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library

20% Increase Reported In Requests For "Touch" DNA Tests

By David Badertscher, PLL

ADVERTISEMENTS

Source: Crime & Justice News "The success of the 'touch' DNA analysis testing using a DNA technique that in July cleared JonBenet Ramsey's family in her death is triggering requests for the test from law enforcement officials seeking similar breakthroughs in unsolved crimes, reports USA Today. Private and state-run laboratories report increases of up to 20 percent in use of the technique. Analysts scrape or swab surfaces such as clothing or food to try to get enough microscopic cells to identify or rule out suspects in violent crimes, robberies, and burglaries. Touch DNA is used on surfaces without a visible stain that investigators suspect might contain genetic material. Experts say the technique can provide a powerful tool to develop fresh leads in unsolved cases. 'In select cases, this has the potential to find a person's DNA when it couldn't be found before,' says Gregory Davis, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of Kentucky. David Cordle of Anne Arundel County, Md., past president of the Mid-Atlantic Cold Case Homicide Investigators Association, decided to use "touch" DNA testing after hearing the analyst who oversaw its use in the Ramsey case speak at the association's conference. 'Some people think it's a shot in the dark,' he says. 'But if you don't have anything else, why not go for it?' USA Today - http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001eptxlA2CbD5JsnAGZwwW08Q9jjLCk7p0IGitnwhBadwda73WUXxK6Wb3hJ8UbpCgWfzQFFNVHs37uxNXVbe0wl0R49e9qqang28ROLC1FiPJYykCGHzW1yQ3q9eEHtBZjq8GC1MkyL605zGECjvOPNXvFME8SJs8hN__bOuX0JU=

Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on September 24, 2008 (boomark / email).