DNA During the 1990\'s, DNA

DNA

During the 1990's, DNA testing became popular in the area of Law Enforcement and the criminal justice system. Today hundreds of cases, both cold and live, have been solved using DNA evidence as a primary tool during both investigation and trials. While the power of DNA analysis, particularly combined with the Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, has great advantages to law enforcement, there are also disadvantages to such technology.

When collected, documented, and stored appropriately, DNA evidence, or biological evidence, can be a useful tool for crime scene investigation, even after several years (National Institute of Justice (NIJ), 2002). Since hair, blood, semen, and other bodily fluids and tissues contain DNA specific to each individual person, much like fingerprints, crime scene investigators can collect DNA from victims, crime scenes, and suspects. If DNA found, for example, in the semen of a rape victim, and if that DNA matches that of a suspect, there is a high likelihood the suspect is responsible. This can be immensely useful in identifying criminals within a group (NIJ, 2002).

In addition, due to the life of DNA, old cases thought unsolvable are now being reopened, and checked for DNA evidence (NIJ, 2002). This allows old cases to be reinvestigated, using samples of tissues and other biological information taken at the time the crime was committed. Even several years later, a person suspected of the crime can be brought in for DNA analysis against crime scene evidence, and if a match is found, investigators can prosecute accordingly, bringing the perpetrator to justice (FBI, 2000).

While DNA is a powerful tool alone, the creation of the DNA database has proved to be an even more effective tool in criminal investigation. A DNA database, such as the FBI's CODIS system, often contain two indexes, those of crime scenes, and those of offenders. When a crime is committed in which DNA evidence is found, police and investigators can compare the crime scene samples to samples in either index. In doing so, investigators can link together crime scenes, as well as locate possible suspects from the offender registry (FBI, 2000).

CODIS links together local, State, and Federal DNA databases to one another, allowing law enforcement to compare crime scene and perpetrator information not only on a local level, but on a national level (FBI, 2000). Since many criminal activities are done by repeat offenders, this can assist law enforcement in determining possible suspects, even if those suspects live in States other than their own (NIJ, 2002).

While useful tools, these databases can also lead to a number of disadvantages. Primarily, as various States attempt to comply with mandatory DNA database management, a backlog of forensic evidence has developed. In some cases, as these pieces of crime scene evidence await processing, the integrity of such delicate information can be compromised (NIJ, 2002). Furthermore, the cost of DNA analysis can be high, and some smaller local governments cannot afford to process the crime scene information (NIJ, 2002).