January 31, 2012 Updated Jan 31, 2012 at 5:31 PM EST

Buffalo, N.Y. (WKBW release) -- New York Lieutenant Governor Robert J. Duffy on Tuesday joined with City of Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown and law enforcement officials to show support for Governor Andrew M. Cuomo's proposal to expand the state's DNA Databank, which will help solve more crimes, bring justice to victims and exonerate innocent New Yorkers.

The Lieutenant Governor and Mayor were joined at the Buffalo City Hall press conference by Erie County's First Assistant District Attorney Michael J. Flaherty, Police Commissioner Daniel Derenda, Chief of Detectives Dennis Richards and Robyn Wiktorky-Reynolds, the Advocate Program Coordinator at Crisis Services.

"When Governor Cuomo detailed his Executive Budget proposal last month, he unveiled the next steps in his plan to build a new New York," Lieutenant Governor Duffy said in a news release. "His plan to expand the state's DNA Databank will transform our criminal justice system. During my law enforcement career, I saw case after case where DNA evidence made a difference – excluding individuals from suspicion, identifying those responsible for crimes and giving victims closure and a measure of justice. I can't imagine why anyone would want to preclude such a powerful tool from being used to its fullest potential."

Mayor Brown said, "Governor Cuomo's proposal to expand the DNA Databank is critically important to solving crimes, and equally as important to keep people who are innocent from being wrongly convicted. This is going to be another useful crime fighting tool to help the Buffalo Police Department and other law enforcement agencies further reduce crime in Buffalo, and across New York."

Chief Richards said, "It is important to mention that both Governor Cuomo, as former State Attorney General, and Lieutenant Governor Duffy, as the former Chief of the Rochester Police Department, truly understand the value of DNA collection. In Buffalo, we know the value of DNA evidence, which was invaluable in solving a string of three homicides, committed by Altemio Sanchez, or the cold case murder investigation of Barbara Lloyd, who was brutally killed in 1974. It was DNA evidence that led to an arrest on February 1, 2007 and subsequent conviction of Leon Chatt for her stabbing death."

New York State has yet to realize the full potential of the DNA Databank because state law only permits DNA to be collected from 48 percent of offenders convicted of a Penal Law crime. Currently, anyone convicted of a felony or one of 36 misdemeanors under the Penal Law must provide a DNA sample.

The Governor's proposal would require DNA samples to be collected from anyone convicted of all remaining Penal Law misdemeanors and any felony under other state laws, such as felony driving while intoxicated under the Vehicle and Traffic Law, aggravated animal cruelty under the Agriculture and Markets Law, and prescription drug offenses under the Public Health Law.

The Databank was created in 1996. Since that time, DNA evidence has helped prosecutors solve more than 2,700 crimes and has exonerated 27 New Yorkers, including three men in Erie County.

New York's Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Elizabeth Glazer said: "Every day we wait to expand the state's DNA Databank, another cold case goes unresolved, a person wrongly convicted sits in prison, and we risk one of our loved ones falling victim to a crime that could have been prevented. How do we know this? Because we have evidence that shows every time we expanded the Databank, we solved more crimes. It's just that simple."

The last expansion in 2006, which for the first time made some misdemeanors DNA-eligible, showed that criminals do not specialize. Today's low-level offender is often yesterday's violent felon:

•?DNA samples taken from individuals convicted of the misdemeanor crime of petit larceny have been linked to 965 crimes, including 51 murders, 222 sexual assaults, 117 robberies, and 407 burglaries.

•?And DNA samples taken from individuals convicted of second-degree criminal trespass have been linked to 30 homicides, 110 sexual assaults and 121 burglaries, among other crimes.

Data from the state Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) also shows that offenders linked to crimes through the DNA Databank had three prior convictions for non-DNA eligible offenses before they were convicted of offenses that required DNA samples. Many of low-level, non-DNA eligible misdemeanors are precursors to violent crime:

•?27 percent of individuals convicted of unauthorized use of a vehicle are subsequently arrested for a violent felony offense within five years of the misdemeanor conviction.

•?21 percent of individuals convicted of three other misdemeanors – third-degree criminal trespass, fourth-degree criminal mischief and theft of services – also are subsequently arrested for a violent felony offense within five years of being convicted of one of those crimes.

Taking a DNA sample is not an invasive process: convicted offenders rub the inside of their cheek with a swab. The New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center then converts that material into a numerical profile, specifically unique to that offender. The profile is only used to match convicted offenders to evidence found at a crime scene, and link crimes that may involve the same perpetrator. The profile cannot be used for any other purpose and cannot identify anything about a person's race, appearance, health or behavior.

The process in which DNA profiles are uploaded, tested and matched to convicted offenders ensures that nothing, other than science, affects the outcome of a match. Names, photographs or criminal history records that correspond to the DNA profiles are not maintained in the Databank, and DCJS, the agency confirming the identity once a match has been made, does not have access to the DNA profiles maintained in the Databank. Also, once a DNA match has been made, confirmatory testing is done to ensure its accuracy before local labs and law enforcement personnel are notified.

The New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center in Albany can process 10,000 DNA samples from convicted offenders a month. The Governor's proposed expansion will bring the monthly total to less than 7,000 and will not create a backlog.

If enacted, the Governor's proposal would take effect Oct. 1, 2012, and it would not be retroactive. In addition, the proposal would not apply to children involved in Family Court matters or youthful offenders.

Follow this link:
Lt. Gov., Mayor Brown Show Support for DNA Databank Expansion