Quicker turnaround needed for DNA testing

By Mark Wyland 5 p.m.Feb. 19, 2014

DNA evidence has become an increasingly powerful tool for solving crimes. Law enforcement officials use DNA to solve homicides and sexual assaults, and cold cases. Police detectives even collect DNA in burglaries.

But many police departments have large backlogs of DNA samples waiting for laboratory testing, leaving many victims in a state of flux and crimes unsolved.

The news over the weekend about the 23-year-old suspect arrested in San Marcos, who broke into an apartment complex and entered the bedrooms where young girls were sleeping, may not have been cleared up so quickly without DNA testing.

Because the suspect left blood behind, police were able to obtain a positive identification of the suspect and make the arrest. The suspect was known to San Diego County Sheriffs detectives and patrol deputies for his past activities. The suspects DNA was already in the police database, allowing a quick match.

DNA testing is an invaluable tool for law enforcement, as in the San Marcos case. But not all crimes are so easily solved.

The San Diego crime lab has struggled for years to clear up the backlog of DNA testing related to crimes. The crime lab recently received a $380,000 grant from the Department of Justices 2013 DNA Backlog Reduction Program.

More than $9 million was issued to law enforcement agencies throughout California to help keep up with cases involving DNA evidence. This needs to be a funding priority in the state budget.

There have been several attempts to legislatively address the backlog of DNA testing in the criminal justice system.

A 2010 bill by Assemblyman Anthony Portantino, AB 1017, would have required every law enforcement agency to report backlogs of DNA tests to the California Department of Justice. However, AB 1017 was vetoed because of cost concerns.

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Quicker turnaround needed for DNA testing