"State hits crime lab on DNA cache; Some files improperly kept, IG says" by Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff | February 4, 2009
The State Police crime laboratory is storing the DNA profiles of hundreds of people whose crimes do not warrant it, according to an investigation of the historically troubled lab, raising the specter of what one civil libertarian called a "shadow DNA database."
Under state law, the crime lab is authorized to collect genetic samples from anyone convicted of a felony and to store them in the Combined DNA Index System, or CODIS, the FBI-funded computer database that serves as a registry for more than 6.3 million DNA samples of convicted criminals collected by law enforcement nationwide.
But the analysis by state Inspector General Gregory W. Sullivan, which is to be released today, found that the lab mistakenly entered the profiles of other defendants, including those who were convicted of misdemeanors, or felonies that were later reversed.
The lab, which discovered most of the errant profiles before the investigation, removed them from the federal database but is still storing them in a separate, searchable database....
How many times I gotta say it? They NEVER GET RID of NUTHIN'!!!!
A bill signed into law by then-Governor Mitt Romney in 2003 expanded the database from individuals convicted of serious or violent felonies to all convicted felons. But some state employees erroneously took samples from people not required to give them....
--more--"Turns out it doesn't matter what state you are in:
"Major overhaul of crime labs urged" by Associated Press | February 19, 2009
WASHINGTON - Crime labs nationwide must be overhauled to prevent the types of mistakes that put innocent people in prison and leave criminals out on the street, researchers have concluded.
Bush and Cheney are still walking around free, right?
A 255-page report from the National Academy of Sciences is urging creation of national standards of training, certification, and expertise for forensic criminal work, much of which is done on a city or state level. The report's authors say the lack of consistent standards raises the possibility that the quality of forensic evidence presented in court can vary unpredictably.
You mean it ain't like the prick cops violating everyone's rights like on the tv shows?
In particular, the report's authors point out that, with the lone exception of DNA evidence, similar analysis of bite marks, tool marks, or hair samples cannot provide a conclusive "match" in the common understanding of the term.
Especially when authorities lie: State Dentists Perjured Themselves
Such evidence can show similarities between a suspect and evidence left at a crime scene, but does not provide absolute certainty....
--more--"
You can't trust the state for nothiong, can you?
