http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/forensics.shtml
I have been researching the uses of biotechnology in Forensics and have come upon some very useful information in regards to how decades old DNA can be restored. In the past, DNA that had been improperly stored or stored for too long had a good chance of degrading and becoming useless to the law enforcement community. This however, due to some recent innovation in the last few years is almost a thing of the past.
Years ago a sample of DNA the size of a quarter was required to get accurate incriminating information. Now with PCR or Polymerase Chain Reaction analysis we can take very minute amounts (a matter of a few skin cells) and even degraded samples of DNA and amplify them. This process works by heating the DNA, denaturing its proteins and then allowing it to cool in the presence of a polymerase, which replicates the DNA. This process is done repeatedly until sufficient genetic material has been produced. Since DNA is produced by a system of exact copies the new material is just like the old in every way.
This innovation has allowed the re-opening of many cold cases in which the evidence had been unable to be analysed in the past. I believe this to be a great benefit to the justice system in that previous evidence that was once considered unusable but would have saved someone jail time or put a criminal behind bars can now be recovered and properly analysed.
I do not know of any controversy as of yet with this process other than the statute of limitations laws are currently under scrutiny because of the new ability to recover once lost evidence. There are now states who are changing the statute of limitations to start upon the discovery of new DNA evidence. I think overall that this technology is more of a boon than a bane. I hope that someday, evidence once stored on a shelf thought to be too degraded for use in court may be of use due to this technology and that justice will be served.
Showing posts with label DNA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DNA. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
The use of DNA to solve criminal cases.
http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/194197.pdf
I was researching the topic of forensics in biotechnology and the uses of DNA in criminal investigations and I came across this report from the attorney generals office on using DNA to solve cold cases. I must admit that all I knew before this, of how DNA is used in investigations came from TV sitcoms like CSI.
I spent some time going over the article and found it to be most informative. Today DNA is almost a common household acronym but only about 20 years ago was it just starting to get serious attention from the law enforcement community. Today thanks to PCR, we can use DNA that is decades old much like finger prints to track down criminals with the aid of information technology systems such as CODIS.
CODIS or the Combined DNA Index System which is operated by the FBI acts like a library for DNA evidence collected at crime scenes. The great thing about this is that once information is entered, participating states and local authorities can compare their DNA samples to the database and look for matches. This allowed one case in which a man was raping women and burning their houses down to be caught and brought to justice. The man was arrested in another city for firing a gun in public which then required that his DNA be entered into CODIS. This entry set off the alarm that he was involved in more than just a public disturbance.
I believe that this technology will help bring justice to many and that the public will greatly appreciate the ability to remove the doubt of conviction. This system not only has put people behind bars but has freed people from prison as well. There has been some debate though, as with any technology, its only as good as the people who are trained to use it. Contamination of evidence and older samples are often too degraded to use. These problems however are becoming less persistent as the technology gets better.
I think this is a great advance and that it will only get better. I do however hope that this technology wont be used to watch the general populace. I believe that the more technological the justice system becomes that the better off we will be. No more will a confused and scared "eye witness" be able to convince a jury of convicting when good DNA evidence says other words. Technology may be cold but it doesn't make mistakes like people. Lets make this technology more available to law enforcement across the country. Lets integrate biotechnology with the law.
I was researching the topic of forensics in biotechnology and the uses of DNA in criminal investigations and I came across this report from the attorney generals office on using DNA to solve cold cases. I must admit that all I knew before this, of how DNA is used in investigations came from TV sitcoms like CSI.
I spent some time going over the article and found it to be most informative. Today DNA is almost a common household acronym but only about 20 years ago was it just starting to get serious attention from the law enforcement community. Today thanks to PCR, we can use DNA that is decades old much like finger prints to track down criminals with the aid of information technology systems such as CODIS.
CODIS or the Combined DNA Index System which is operated by the FBI acts like a library for DNA evidence collected at crime scenes. The great thing about this is that once information is entered, participating states and local authorities can compare their DNA samples to the database and look for matches. This allowed one case in which a man was raping women and burning their houses down to be caught and brought to justice. The man was arrested in another city for firing a gun in public which then required that his DNA be entered into CODIS. This entry set off the alarm that he was involved in more than just a public disturbance.
I believe that this technology will help bring justice to many and that the public will greatly appreciate the ability to remove the doubt of conviction. This system not only has put people behind bars but has freed people from prison as well. There has been some debate though, as with any technology, its only as good as the people who are trained to use it. Contamination of evidence and older samples are often too degraded to use. These problems however are becoming less persistent as the technology gets better.
I think this is a great advance and that it will only get better. I do however hope that this technology wont be used to watch the general populace. I believe that the more technological the justice system becomes that the better off we will be. No more will a confused and scared "eye witness" be able to convince a jury of convicting when good DNA evidence says other words. Technology may be cold but it doesn't make mistakes like people. Lets make this technology more available to law enforcement across the country. Lets integrate biotechnology with the law.
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