DNA Typing: A New Investigatory Tool
1989; Duke University School of Law; Volume: 1989; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/1372621
ISSN1939-9111
Autores Tópico(s)Animal Genetics and Reproduction
ResumoExperts describe DNA typingl-a test used to identify persons based on the genetic code found in their DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)as "the most significant break through in resolving serious crime since fingerprinting was invented."'2 Because all of a person's cells carry the same DNA, and each person's DNA is unique (except in the case of identical twins), DNA typing can identify people with "near-perfect accuracy."'3A recent English case, Regina v. Pitchfork 4 vividly illustrates DNA typing's tremendous potential as an investigatory tool.In 1983, a teenage girl was raped and murdered near the village of Enderby.The police were unable to find the murderer.Three years later, another girl was raped and murdered near the same village.Authorities took DNA prints from the semen found on her body and discovered they matched those taken from the first victim, thus indicating that the same person had committed both crimes.The police then arrested a seventeen-year-old and subjected a sample of his blood to DNA typing.The suspect's DNA prints did not match those found on the victims, however, and the police subsequently released him.
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