how many people believe dna testing is reliable ?
Post on 21-Jan-2016
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What is DNA?DNA is also known
as “deoxyribonucleic acid”
•every person's DNA is the same in every cell
•deoxyribonucleic acid is the basic building block for an individual's entire “genetic makeup”
DNA Molecule
relatively a recent discovery! DNA was discovered back in 1969
however it was first accepted into U.S courtrooms in the year 1985
in November 1987, Orlando prosecutors scored the first conviction in the U.S
since 1987 DNA has played an important part in many important cases
Poor attempts !The handling and care of DNA testing is very important
Getting DNA from a suspect is easy
however, getting DNA from crime scene can be much more challenging
A poor attempt at removal can end up destroying the evidence altogether
Freed because of DNA test ! Convicts have been freed of violent crimes
using DNA test
Murder, rape, and many other violent crimes.
In recent years, dozens of people were jailed or scheduled for execution because of DNA evidence
empty
Prime example ! In 1974, James Bain was
sent to prison for life
He was accused of raping a 9 yr. Old boy.
Bain provided an alibi, but was charged anyway
He spent 35 yrs. In prison before being released
DNA showed that he was the wrong man
The evidence in this trial was largely circumstantial.
Wrongly Accused
No one compares ! 245 convicts in the
U.S. were convicted by DNA evidence since 1989
Of them 245 convicts not 1 has come close to spending as much time in prison as James Bain
James Bain a FREE MAN
At trial ! FBI analyst was a witness
The semen on the underpants came from a person with blood group B
Bain’s blood group was tested to be AB
Bain could not be ruled out as the suspect
Court House
100 % reliable Despite evidence many people believe DNA testing
is 100 % reliable
Supporters say that they have strong support in the innocence protection act
Which would increase prisoner access to post conviction DNA testing
Death penalty opponents account for many of the people that support post conviction
Supporters believe!DNA test can clear the wrongly accused
DNA evidence can be used to establish identity to a high degree of certainty
such as rapes, homicides to armed robberies
Armed Robbery
The other side ! Non’ supporters say that DNA testing is not
one hundred percent accurate
They believe that there are many problems facing DNA
Some argue that granting requests for DNA tests in cases where it might be enough to prove innocence can also harm victims
Faking DNA evidence! Scientists have demonstrated
that it is possible to fake DNA evidence
They fabricated blood and saliva samples contained from a person other than donor
Also shown if access to a DNA profile database they could construct a sample of DNA to match without any tissue from that person
Ways to fake DNA ! Scientist showed 2
ways that they were able to fake DNA
One requires a very small DNA sample, possibly from a string of hair or a cup
Scientists amplified the tiny sample into a large number of DNA using a standard method called whole genome amplification
Very Costly !Many people are not opposed to testing
on a limited basis
They also warn such test would
crowd the court system with “frivolous” requests
They argue that post conviction tests would only waste a lot of money
Public Survey !
05
1015
202530354045
50
Q. 1 Q. 2 Q. 3
Yes
No
Q.1- should DNA test be allowed in the courtroom
Q. 2- do you believe DNA evidence is reliable
Q. 3- do you think people that are already incarcerated should have the right to DNA testing
Conclusion Cont.! most compelling research- The strongest
argument against DNA evidence in the courtroom is that it is not accurate
most interesting idea – Its very interesting an undergraduate student, not even a doctor, can fake DNA evidence.
That means a smart criminal could do it too.
Benefits ! Satisfaction with work – I think my senior
project will benefit me because I am planning on going to college to study the field forensic science.
future research on knowledge attained – I plan to go into forensic science in college and I will definitely study this topic many times.
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