Unsolved Cases: Lawfully Owed DNA May Hold the Answers

Many states have laws requiring that people arrested, convicted or imprisoned on certain charges have their DNA added to criminal DNA databases. These DNA samples, termed “lawfully owed DNA,” provide many benefits to both law enforcement and public safety: connecting arrestees to unsolved crimes, identifying offenders early in their criminal careers and exonerating suspects. As of October 2021, the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), managed by the FBI, has produced over 587,773 hits assisting in more than 574,343 investigations.¹ A 2017 study showed that DNA databases offer law enforcement a cost savings of $1,500 to nearly $20,000 for each included DNA profile.² And according to a 2020 study, offender DNA registration showed a reduction in property crimes by 42%, violent crime by 60% and weapon offenses by 88% in the first year after database entry. This trend in crime reduction persisted for more than three years.³ Data from this study and others like it suggest that DNA database enrollment not only deters offenders from committing new crimes, but also increases the likelihood they will find employment, enroll in education and live in a more stable family environment.

Although criminal databases have delivered decades of successes and benefits, many cases demonstrate how a lack of offender DNA enrollment and proper DNA evidence testing can negatively impact survivors and their families, while leaving offenders to roam free, able to commit more crimes, or wrongly punishing the innocent. In December 2008, a woman in Ohio was punched and choked by an assailant who then attempted to sexually assault her. In that same area, in April 2009, another woman was dragged into a house, held for two days, beaten, and repeatedly raped. In October 2009, police arrested the alleged assailant from the April 2009 rape and discovered 11 decomposing bodies in and around his home. Dubbed the Cleveland Strangler, the assailant had received a 15-year prison sentence for attempted rape in 1990 and, according to Ohio State law, should have had his DNA entered into the DNA Database in 1997 and multiple times thereafter. If his DNA profile had been uploaded into the convicted offender database, how many of those 11 victims and their families could have been spared? The Cleveland Strangler case is just one of many that has uncovered a systemic problem of failing to collect and process DNA samples from all offenders who lawfully “owe” their DNA.

Many complicating factors can prevent lawfully owed DNA collections from occurring within the criminal justice system, including missed court hearings, ignored court orders, complex or unclear statutes, and manual or flawed intake processes. Similarly, when a range of agencies are responsible for different steps in the judicial process, each transfer step creates the opportunity for errors and omissions.⁴ Missing these lawfully owed samples restricts the power of CODIS and fails to hold offenders accountable. Across the country, it is estimated that 30,000–50,000 lawfully owed samples, per state, are missing due to these complicating, systemic circumstances. Criminal justice authorities continue to close loopholes in their DNA collection laws and many agencies, with the support of grants, have undertaken studies to understand the depth of this issue and properly address workflow gaps.⁴

Policy changes to authorize the collection and processing of DNA upon arrest can help to ensure individuals who are arrested have their DNA collected and uploaded when appropriate. To assist law enforcement with proper collection and entry, the FBI NDIS-approved Applied Biosystems RapidHIT ID Booking System seamlessly integrates DNA with existing fingerprint and biometric information systems to automatically process and enroll arrestee DNA at the time of booking. In as little as 90 minutes, while the offender is still in custody, their DNA is searched against DNA evidence from unsolved cases in the U.S. National DNA Index System (NDIS).

Incomplete offender DNA databases undermine efforts to reduce the extensive nationwide criminal case backlog. Imagine the impact to public safety, recidivism and officer safety when DNA and other biometrics quickly inform investigations, identify repeat offenders and exonerate the innocent — and this all happens in real-time versus weeks, months, or years.

Learn more about the FBI NDIS-Approved Applied Biosystems RapidHIT ID Booking System.

Watch: Rapid DNA Booking Station Best Practices to learn more about best practices for RapidDNA booking station implementation

Watch: Every minute counts when it comes to apprehending and eliminating suspects. Discover how testing a suspect’s DNA in the booking station can lead to an immediate connection with a crime, help reduce crimes rates and deter criminals.

Catch on-demand the 7th annual Human Identification Solutions (HIDS) Conference: Uniting the criminal justice community in a reimagined virtual experience. www.hids2021.com. And don’t miss the session on DNA Hit of the Year: A Look Back at Some of the Most Influential Cases. The DNA Hit of the Year program is an international collaboration that shares, through real cases, the value of DNA Databases on a global scale.

References:

1. FBI. (n.d.). CODIS – NDIS Statistics. https://www.fbi.gov/services/laboratory/biometric-analysis/codis/ndis-statistics
2. Doleac JL. (2016). The Effects of DNA Databases on Crime. SSRN Scholarly Paper.
3. Tegner Anker AS, JL Doleac, R Landersø. (2020). The Effects of DNA Databases on the Deterrence and Detection of Offenders. SSRN Scholarly Paper.
4. Forensic Technology Center of Excellence. (2021). Perspectives on Addressing the Collection, Tracking, and Processing of Lawfully Owed DNA Samples. U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, Office of Investigative and Forensic Sciences, April 2021. https://www.ojp.gov/library/publications/perspectives-addressing-collection-tracking-and-processing-lawfully-owed-dna