By Susan Gaertner
A powerful new tool for justice is coming of age as the new millennium approaches.
Though still in its infancy, DNA testing arguably has emerged as the century's greatest advance in forensic evidence. Simply put, this new technology helps to convict the guilty and free the innocent. It does so by comparing DNA samples from crime scenes against the DNA profiles of potential suspects. These unique profiles have been identifiable only in recent years.
The immense impact of DNA evidence generates almost daily headlines in Minnesota and across the country. In recent months, for example, DNA linked a prison inmate to a rape and murder that occurred four years ago in Rochester. In a similar case, a DNA sample led to charges against an imprisoned sex offender in connection with a rape seven years ago in Minneapolis. Justice took a different turn in a New York case, where a 60-year-old prison inmate was freed last September after a DNA test cleared him of raping a woman.
Perhaps the biggest stir, however, arose in October with the filing of rape and kidnapping charges against a defendant known only by his DNA profile. In this Milwaukee case, DNA samples link the suspect to three sexual attacks that occurred six years ago. Authorities, however, do not know who the perpetrator is.
By filing a criminal complaint against this "John Doe," identified solely by his DNA code, prosecutors keep the statute of limitations from expiring while the search for the suspect continues. This is a rare legal move, and one that undoubtedly will prompt a challenge. Regardless of the outcome, though, this case illustrates the promise of DNA evidence.
The fact is, suspects may change their outward appearance, and witnesses' memories may fade over the years. But a suspect's DNA profile stays the same throughout his or her life, providing a surefire identification. With such powerful and unswerving evidence, the criminal justice system can resolve crimes regardless of the passage of time.
The Milwaukee case quickly drew the attention of Minnesota policy-makers. One legislator already has drafted a bill allowing prosecutors to file rape charges against unknown defendants based upon "John Doe" DNA profiles. The Minnesota County Attorneys Association is likely to support this measure or legislation that similarly removes the threat of losing cases to the statute of limitations.
As prosecutors, we regard DNA testing as a key to unlock the truth, not to lock up more defendants. We recognize that DNA testing often proves just as valuable for defense attorneys as for prosecutors. DNA evidence has helped to exonerate many suspects and even to reverse convictions. It truly is an instrument of justice. This is its beauty.
The immense promise of DNA testing as a tool for justice mushroomed with the creation of a national DNA databank in October 1998. Minnesota is among 23 states that participate in the national databank, which contains more than 250,000 DNA profiles.
The databank, operated by the FBI, enables crime labs throughout the United States to compare DNA profiles electronically. This, in turn, makes it possible to link unsolved serial violent crimes to each other and to known sex offenders. Earlier this year, the national databank recorded its first "cold hit" when six rapes in Washington, D.C., were linked to three rapes in Florida based solely on a match of DNA profiles.
In the Milwaukee case, the FBI computer will compare "John Doe's" DNA to thousands of new genetic samples from around the country every month. Sooner or later, "John Doe" is likely to be identified by his real name. And when that happens, he will have some explaining to do.
Minnesota excels in such high-tech sleuthing. Over the past nine years, at least 15 sexual assaults have been solved – despite no suspects or clues -- because DNA samples from victims or crime scenes have matched profiles in the databank maintained by the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. This database contains about 8,700 profiles of felony sex offenders.
The state databank will broaden its focus starting July 1, 2000, to include DNA samples from felons convicted of such crimes as murder, manslaughter, kidnapping and robbery. With this expanded database, DNA testing will become an even more powerful tool.
Just 10 years ago, I became the first prosecutor in Minnesota to present DNA evidence to a jury. It was cutting-edge stuff at the time, and somewhat controversial. Today, the controversy has faded in the face of a bright reality – a dramatic advancement in the quality of justice born from an exciting technology.
Susan Gaertner is the Ramsey County Attorney. She serves on the National Forensic DNA Review Panel as the National District Attorneys Association's representative.