Deoxyribonucleic Acid Used as Evidence in Solving Criminal Cold Cases Perry Hawn

Deoxyribonucleic Acid Used as licence in Solving Criminal Cold Cases Imagine it is a charming spring morning and you argon walking along when suddenly a man wearing a ski mask and gloves jumps out from butt the bushes and your life is forever changed after this man drags you by your hair, behind the bushes, and issuance to violently assault you. By some miracle you survive the attack and portend the police. However, beca office this man was wearing a mask and gloves the police have no way of immediately identifying the perpetrator.You be leaven to the nearest hospital where they take swabs from your vaginal area in hopes to collect enough Deoxyribonucleic Acid ( deoxyribonucleic acid) to pull in a sample that undersurface be added to the Combined deoxyribonucleic acid mightiness System (CODIS) ( may & McIntyre, 2002, p. v). A few years have passed and you hear a knock on your front door. It is a police detective who has tell apart to your home to tell you that an arrest h as been made in your case base on a DNA stop made from a communicate swab taken from a man who was arrested a few geezerhood earlier for robbery.The purpose of this writing is to provide an argument in estimate of the June ninth United States Supreme Court decision where five of the society sightlyices sitting agreed that taking DNA samples collected from those who are venture of having committed a crime does not violate the fourth amendment of the establishment protecting Americans against unreasonable searches and seizures (Kirkland, 2013). The decision opened the door for police and another(prenominal) authorized rightfulness enforcement agencies to collect D. N. A. samples from suspects at the time of arrest so that the suspects D. N. A. can be customd to possibly solve shabby cases (St. Martin, 2013). Additionally, this paper ordain fence in that using D. N. A. as distinguish has two-fold benefits interchangeable it is infallible be motion individually pers ons D. N. A. is unique with the elision of alike births(May & McIntyre, 2002). Further, DNA proof has been used to solve crimes such as rape, robbery, and homicides. Additionally, D. N. A. offers law enforcement agencies new shipway of expression at old crimes by dint of the use of advanced technology, inter field of study and national databases (Hampikian, 2013).Deoxyribonucleic Acid Deoxyribonucleic Acid more than usually known as DNA is the building block of all biography beings. In humans DNA is inherited from your ancestors and determines your hair color, eye color, height, devise structure, blood instance and other personal attributes (Van der Sijde, 2013). DNA can be collected from any biological sample like bodily fluids and tissues (What, n. d. ). With the exception of identical births like twins separately persons DNA is as unique as his or her fingerprint (May & McIntyre, 2002). Infallible separate D. N. A. rovides foolproof evidence for several reasons inclu ding the one made by May and McIntyre cited above referencing the fact that each DNA sample is unique to its proprietor (except for identical births). Other arguments in favor of D. N. A. being sound evidence include the fact that new ways of collecting, storing, and analyzing D. N. A. have increased the biography of the collected samples do those samples viable years, even decades, after it is collected (May & McIntyre, 2002, p. 3). furthermore reliable DNA samples can be taken from any type of biological sample including deceased victims (What, n. . ).Uses of D. N. A. Evidence D. N. A. evidence can be used to solve a multitude of crimes, incarcerate the guilty, and free the innocent. In one such case the perpetrator of an aged womans rape and attempted murder in North Carolina was arrested because of the feloniouss D. N. A. having been collected from multiple victims at differing crime scenes. Ten years later a D. N. A. match was found after the criminal had been arrested for an unrelated crime, as a end point of D. N. A. evidence. This criminal nicknamed the Night Stalker (May & McIntyre, 2002, p. ) is currently on death grade after being indicted for three counts of starting detail murder, three counts of first degree rape, three counts of first degree burglary, attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, first degree arson and burning of personal puritanicalty (State, 2003, pp. 2-3). New Way to answer Old Crimes Use of advanced technologies that allow smaller samples of DNA to be collected for analyzing has made use of DNA to solve crimes more palatable.You can read also King v CogdonWhat once to take a sample the size of a nickel (Temple-Raston, 2008, p. 1) now only ask to be the size of a pinprick (Temple-Raston, 2008, p. 1) offers a new way of looking at long-standing criminal investigations. Use of robotics to handle DNA samples allows for more fast processing of samples creates a more favo rable purlieu for solving cold cases (Temple-Raston, 2008). Further, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) is responsible for the creation of CODIS which is a roster of antecedent criminals into a national data database (Temple-Raston, 2008, p. ) CODIS links the DNA of prior offenders on a local, state, national and in some cases international level on tap(predicate) to law enforcement to help unravel unsolved cases (Combined, n. d. ). Right to Privacy Opponents argue that the taking of DNA from alleged suspects at the time of arrest violates his or her intrinsic right to privacy or that the police will use the ruling to arrest anyone for minor infractions of the law just to get a DNA sample for a possible match (Flock, 2013).In the dissent opinion Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia wrote Make no fault about it because of todays decision, your DNA can be taken and entered into a national database if you are ever arrested, rightly or wrongly, and for whatever reason (Flock , 2013, p. 1). However, medico District Attorney, Douglas F. Gansler, disagrees pointing out that law enforcement cannot arrest someone without probable cause and further states if police are genuinely interested in someones DNA, they could just go pick up their Diet Coke can at the McDonalds (Flock, 2013, p. 1).Moreover, the majority of justices on the Supreme Court ruled that D. N. A. sample accruement via mouth swab does not violate the fourth amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures (St. Martin, 2013). impoverished Until Proven Guilty Lets face it folks who are going through the court system are there because the evidence pointed to him or her as a probable suspect. In actuality, because you cant argue with D. N. A. , D. N. A. swabbing has done more to convict those who are very guilty of committing crimes. Additionally, according to numbers gathered by the innocence fuddle D. N. A. wabbing conducted after conviction has freed over 300 inmates who have bee n wrongly convicted by the court system under due process (DNA, 2013).Storage and sight Methods Opponents of D. N. A. collection would argue that the storage and collection methods of D. N. A. are outdated and unreliable. However, proper training and new technology allow for D. N. A. to be collected and stored without risk of infection of contamination. Training forensics experts to wear and change his or her gloves after touching each item vetos contamination. Additionally, storage of DNA samples in a cool, dry environment is another technique used to preserve D. N. A. samples. Other methods used to prevent the samples from becoming contaminated include use of separate storage envelopes for each sampling (What, 2013). Also, with the use of cutting edge technology like barcoding DNA samples (Hampikian, 2013) the storage and collection methods used for crime scene DNA are constantly improving and becoming more secure. Conclusion Technology is immaterial It convicts and finds inno cents. We must make it a regularized part of the system, giving defendants access to DNA testing and evidence whenever it might be pertinent (Spitzer, 2013, n. ). Law enforcement needs a way to protect society from the criminal element who are becoming smarter and advancing their aptitudes for breaking the law through the use of technology. The Supreme Courts ruling which allows for the swabbing of those arrested will help in solving crimes and exonerating the innocent. New and innovative technologies are making the collection and storage of DNA nearly fail proof. The modernization of the ways in which DNA is used in the criminal justice system is an ever evolving process that seems to be leading us to a more fair and just society.