NYCLU: DAs’ Push for DNA Databank Expansion All Hollywood, Ignores Unanswered Questions

The New York Civil Liberties Union today released a revised edition of Unanswered Questions about Proposals to Expand the State’s DNA Databank, a document that cites internationally recognized experts on forensic DNA who raise provocative questions about large scale expansions of DNA databanks. The release comes the same day that district attorneys are in Albany lobbying for New York to expand its DNA databank with Hollywood actress and Law & Order star Mariska Hargitay.

“On Law & Order or CSI, DNA is infallible. Unfortunately, in the real world, things aren’t so simple; the possibility for error, fraud and abuse exists at every step from the moment a DNA sample is collected,” said NYCLU Legislative Director Robert Perry. “New York’s DNA databank was created in 1994. It has been expanded repeatedly, the science and sophistication have advanced, and yet lawmakers have not even begun to think about what’s required in terms of regulatory oversight and quality assurance standards that are required to ensure the integrity of the databank and the use of forensic DNA evidence.”

A Q&A, the document cites numerous criminal justice experts whose research identifies problems with the use of DNA databanks – including an unexpectedly high incidence of error and fraud in the collection, handling and analysis of forensic DNA.

DNA is widely considered the forensics gold standard, but the findings compiled by the NYCLU suggest lawmakers and law enforcement professionals have failed to recognize how the “human factor” can lead to flawed prosecutions – and wrongful convictions – due to mislabeling of samples, cross contamination of samples, misinterpretation of DNA analysis and misrepresentation of the test results.

The Q&A also identifies systemic inadequacies in the procedures by which law enforcement officials collect and analyze data on the number of “cold hits” – crime-scene DNA evidence that matches a sample in the databank – that lead to criminal investigations and convictions. The “cold hit” scenario is different from testing a known suspect against crime-scene evidence – which does not require, or rely upon, a databank.

The experts cited by the NYCLU assert that criminal justice professionals lack sufficient data to assess the actual value of DNA databanks in solving crimes.

In its Q&A, the NYCLU also raised concerns about a new “familial searching policy.” This policy authorizes law enforcement officials to investigate family members of an individual whose DNA is a “partial match” with crime scene evidence – on the grounds that a blood relative of that individual may be implicated in the crime. An expanded databank could place entire communities under permanent suspicion – solely because the DNA of a family member is in the state’s databank.

The NYCLU offers a series of recommendations for lawmakers to ensure the integrity of the DNA databank. Among them, New York State must 1) establish an independent, expert task force on forensic DNA that is charged with identifying best practices related to the collection, analysis, storage and use of DNA specimens; and 2) reconstitute the Commission on Forensic Sciences as a more independent, better resourced and more robust regulatory oversight body.