Hello everyone. We have been discussing in class the importance of DNA in everyday life. To
further emphasize the importance of DNA, I want everyone to find a case where DNA was used as
evidence in a criminal proceeding. Provide a brief description of what DNA was found and how it was used in the criminal proceedings.
This blog is intended for an educational exercise for EDM 510 at the University of South Alabama.
I think the typical case used DNA was the 1995 trial of OJ Simpson for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend. The Blood found on the gloves matched OJ Simpson's blood but the DNA testing was done by two independent labs which caused "DNA Wars" of this case.
ReplyDeleteIt's really amazing how far the use of DNA has come. 1985 was when DNA was first used in testing of genetic materials. Now the majority of cases are based on DNA evidence collected.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, DNA testing can provide a 99% accuracy rate of matching the genetic material collected as evidence to that of a suspect. In 1987, Tommie Lee Andrews became the first person convicted in the US based on DNA testing.
ReplyDeleteIt truly is amazing how far we have come with science in general, but it's even more crazy to think about the amount of information we can get from DNA. It's fascinating what all can be determined using forensics. I love watching all of these shows on tv that deal with crime scenes and such. Of course, there are a lot of things that aren't accurate, but just thinking about the amount of information that can come from DNA evidence is just amazing.
ReplyDeleteDNA was instrumental in the Machine Gun Kelly case. George “Machine Gun” Kelly was a notorious criminal during the Prohibition era, taking part in bootlegging, kidnapping and armed robbery. In 1933 he kidnapped a wealthy oil tycoon, Charles Urschel, and held him for ransom for $200,000. Urschel was able to give great detail about his experience being kidnapped and the FBI was able to track his fingerprints to Machine Gun Kelly's father-in-law's farm house.
ReplyDeleteDNA is very helpful in cases of rape as well. I think this is one of the most obvious uses in courts today. You mentioned Tommy Lee Andrews as the first conviction, but the upside of this was Gary Dotson, the first exoneration through DNA.
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