Toward a Comparison of DNA Profiling and Databases in the United States and England

Toward a Comparison of DNA Profiling and Databases in the United States and England PDF Author:
Publisher: Rand Corporation
ISBN: 0833051474
Category : Biometry
Languages : en
Pages : 65

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Book Description
RAND researchers explored the U.S. and English forensic DNA analysis systems to find out whether England has capitalized more fully on their crime-fighting potential than the U.S. system.

Toward a Comparison of DNA Profiling and Databases in the United States and England

Toward a Comparison of DNA Profiling and Databases in the United States and England PDF Author: Jeremiah E. Goulka
Publisher: Rand Corporation
ISBN: 9780833051219
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 30

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Book Description
Many senior U.S. law enforcement officials believe that the English criminal justice system has capitalized more fully on the crime-fighting potential of forensic DNA evidence than the U.S. criminal justice system. They contend that the English system is much faster at testing DNA samples and at uploading the test results into its forensic DNA database and that the English national DNA database provides more database hits that might help law enforcement solve and prevent crimes. Members of the RAND Center on Quality Policing (CQP) asked RAND researchers to explore the forensic DNA analysis systems in England and the United States to find out whether these perceptions are accurate. This report presents CQP's best efforts to undertake this comparative analysis, which was severely hampered by a lack of data on the U.S. and English forensic DNA systems and the unwillingness of some U.S. agencies to share their data. The authors make use of the limited available information to undertake comparisons of the two systems, highlighting the limitations of these comparisons. Additionally, they discuss broader issues that arose during the course of the analysis as to the appropriate metrics that should be used for comparison and the contextual factors that they think should be taken into account in any international comparison of DNA database systems.

Genetic Suspects

Genetic Suspects PDF Author: Richard Hindmarsh
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139490826
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
As DNA forensic profiling and databasing become established as key technologies in the toolbox of the forensic sciences, their expanding use raises important issues that promise to touch everyone's lives. In an authoritative global investigation of a diverse range of countries, including those at the forefront of these technologies' development and use, this book identifies and provides critical reflection upon the many issues of privacy; distributive justice; DNA information system ownership; biosurveillance; function creep; the reliability of collection, storage and analysis of DNA profiles; the possibility of transferring medical DNA information to forensics databases; and democratic involvement and transparency in governance, an emergent key theme. This book is timely and significant in providing the essential background and discussion of the ethical, legal and societal dimensions for academics, practitioners, public interest and criminal justice organisations, and students of the life sciences, law, politics, and sociology.

Law, Practice and Politics of Forensic DNA Profiling

Law, Practice and Politics of Forensic DNA Profiling PDF Author: Victor Toom
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000818578
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
This collection reviews developments in DNA profiling across jurisdictions with a focus on scientific and technological developments as well as their political, ethical, and socio-legal aspects. Written by leading scholars in the fields of social studies of forensic science, science and technology studies and socio-legal studies, the book provides state-of-the-art analyses of forensic DNA practices in a diverse range of jurisdictions, new and emerging forensic genetics technologies and issues of legitimacy. The work articulates the various forms of technolegal politics involved in the everyday, standardised and emerging practices of forensic genetics and engages with the most recent scholarly and policy literature. In analyses of empirical cases, and by taking into account the most recent technolegal developments, the book explores what it means to live in a world that is increasingly governed through anticipatory crime control and its related risk management and bio-surveillance mechanisms, which intervene with and produce political and legal subjectivities through human bodies in their DNA. This volume is an invaluable resource for those working in the areas of social studies of forensic science, science and technology studies, socio-legal studies, sociology, anthropology, ethics, law, politics and international relations.

Inside the Cell

Inside the Cell PDF Author: Erin E Murphy
Publisher: Bold Type Books
ISBN: 1568584709
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 399

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Book Description
Josiah Sutton was convicted of rape. He was five inches shorter and 65 pounds lighter than the suspect described by the victim, but at trial a lab analyst testified that his DNA was found at the crime scene. His case looked like many others -- arrest, swab, match, conviction. But there was just one problem -- Sutton was innocent. We think of DNA forensics as an infallible science that catches the bad guys and exonerates the innocent. But when the science goes rogue, it can lead to a gross miscarriage of justice. Erin Murphy exposes the dark side of forensic DNA testing: crime labs that receive little oversight and produce inconsistent results; prosecutors who push to test smaller and poorer-quality samples, inviting error and bias; law-enforcement officers who compile massive, unregulated, and racially skewed DNA databases; and industry lobbyists who push policies of "stop and spit." DNA testing is rightly seen as a transformative technological breakthrough, but we should be wary of placing such a powerful weapon in the hands of the same broken criminal justice system that has produced mass incarceration, privileged government interests over personal privacy, and all too often enforced the law in a biased or unjust manner. Inside the Cell exposes the truth about forensic DNA, and shows us what it will take to harness the power of genetic identification in service of accuracy and fairness.

Genetic Justice

Genetic Justice PDF Author: Sheldon Krimsky
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231145217
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 426

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Book Description
Explores how the United States and other countries have balanced the use of DNA databanks in criminal justice with the privacy rights of their citizenry, arguing that collecting DNA from those who are arrested, but not charged, can infringe on their constitutional rights and debunking the myth that DNA profiling is infallible.

DNA and Property Crime Scene Investigation

DNA and Property Crime Scene Investigation PDF Author: David Makin
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317522761
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
Traditionally, forensic investigation has not been fully utilized in the investigation of property crime. This ground-breaking book examines the experiences of patrol officers, command staff, detectives, and chiefs as they navigate the expectations of forensic evidence in criminal cases, specifically property crimes cases. DNA and Property Crime Scene Investigation looks at the current state of forensic technology and, using interviews with police officers, command staff, forensic technicians, and prosecutors, elucidates who is doing the work of forensic investigation. It explores how better training can decrease backlogs in forensic evidence processing and prevent mishandling of crucial evidence. Concluding with a police chief’s perspective on the approach, DNA and Property Crime Scene Investigation provides insight into an emerging and important approach to property crime scene investigation. Key Features Provides practical information on implementing forensic investigation for property crimes Examines the current state of forensic technology and points to future trends Includes a police chief’s perspective on the forensic approach to investigating property crimes Utilizes interviews with professionals in the field to demonstrate the benefits of the approach

The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence

The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309134404
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 270

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Book Description
In 1992 the National Research Council issued DNA Technology in Forensic Science, a book that documented the state of the art in this emerging field. Recently, this volume was brought to worldwide attention in the murder trial of celebrity O. J. Simpson. The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence reports on developments in population genetics and statistics since the original volume was published. The committee comments on statements in the original book that proved controversial or that have been misapplied in the courts. This volume offers recommendations for handling DNA samples, performing calculations, and other aspects of using DNA as a forensic toolâ€"modifying some recommendations presented in the 1992 volume. The update addresses two major areas: Determination of DNA profiles. The committee considers how laboratory errors (particularly false matches) can arise, how errors might be reduced, and how to take into account the fact that the error rate can never be reduced to zero. Interpretation of a finding that the DNA profile of a suspect or victim matches the evidence DNA. The committee addresses controversies in population genetics, exploring the problems that arise from the mixture of groups and subgroups in the American population and how this substructure can be accounted for in calculating frequencies. This volume examines statistical issues in interpreting frequencies as probabilities, including adjustments when a suspect is found through a database search. The committee includes a detailed discussion of what its recommendations would mean in the courtroom, with numerous case citations. By resolving several remaining issues in the evaluation of this increasingly important area of forensic evidence, this technical update will be important to forensic scientists and population geneticistsâ€"and helpful to attorneys, judges, and others who need to understand DNA and the law. Anyone working in laboratories and in the courts or anyone studying this issue should own this book.

DNA Technology in Forensic Science

DNA Technology in Forensic Science PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309045878
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 199

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Book Description
Matching DNA samples from crime scenes and suspects is rapidly becoming a key source of evidence for use in our justice system. DNA Technology in Forensic Science offers recommendations for resolving crucial questions that are emerging as DNA typing becomes more widespread. The volume addresses key issues: Quality and reliability in DNA typing, including the introduction of new technologies, problems of standardization, and approaches to certification. DNA typing in the courtroom, including issues of population genetics, levels of understanding among judges and juries, and admissibility. Societal issues, such as privacy of DNA data, storage of samples and data, and the rights of defendants to quality testing technology. Combining this original volume with the new update-The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence-provides the complete, up-to-date picture of this highly important and visible topic. This volume offers important guidance to anyone working with this emerging law enforcement tool: policymakers, specialists in criminal law, forensic scientists, geneticists, researchers, faculty, and students.

The Handbook of Homicide

The Handbook of Homicide PDF Author: Fiona Brookman
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118924495
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 890

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Book Description
The Handbook of Homicide presents a series of original essays by renowned authors from around the world, reflecting the latest scholarship on the nature, causes, and patterns of homicide, as well as policies and practices for its investigation and prevention. Includes comprehensive coverage of the complex phenomenon of homicide and its various forms Features original contributions from an esteemed team of global experts and scholars with chapters highlighting the authors’ original research Represents the first internationally-focused collection of the latest research on the nature and causes of homicide Covers both the causes and dynamics of homicide, as well as policies and practices intended to address it