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HARRISBURG -- Prosecutors and victim advocates urged a House panel Tuesday to support requiring collection of DNA from people arrested for -- but not yet convicted of -- certain serious crimes.

Currently, state law requires DNA samples to be taken from people who are convicted of felonies and certain misdemeanors. The House Judiciary Committee is considering legislation by Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, that calls for collection of DNA at the time of arrest from people charged with murder and felony sex offenses, along with certain other serious crimes. The bill cleared the Senate 38-9 in June.

Representatives of the Pennsylvania district attorneys and attorney general's office -- as well as the mother, turned advocate, of a 22-year-old woman who was murdered in New Mexico in 2003 -- told House members Tuesday that taking DNA samples at arrest would help authorities solve crimes. In some cases, they said, this would prevent rapes and murders.

Twenty-eight U.S. states and the federal government require the collection of DNA at certain arrests, said David Freed, Cumberland County district attorney and president of the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association. One of those laws -- from Maryland -- survived a challenge to the Supreme Court, which ruled in June that police can take genetic samples in arrests for serious crimes.

A representative of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania testified against the bill, saying that taking DNA at the time of arrest turns on its head the premise that defendants are considered innocent until they are proven guilty.

"This person has been arrested for one crime," said Andy Hoover, legislative director for the ACLU of Pennsylvania. "The government has no other evidence that they are a suspect in any other crime, but putting them into the database makes them a suspect indefinitely."

But committee members sounded receptive to the change.

"From my perspective, if you put arrestee information into the lab, this database system and you solve one more murder or one more rape that doesn't occur because you have the system, then that's enough," said Rep. Bryan Barbin, D-Cambria. "You're making an academic argument about something that has real consequences."

The legislation also makes other changes to DNA collection in Pennsylvania. It would expand DNA collection at conviction to additional misdemeanors, including those requiring registration as a sex offender. It also would allow the police to search the state database for profiles likely to be those of close relatives of a person whose DNA was found at a crime scene.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Ron Marsico, R-Dauphin, said he plans to bring up the bill for a vote next week.

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Pa. House panel considers collecting DNA at arrest

Originally published November 12, 2013 at 4:45 PM | Page modified November 13, 2013 at 7:30 AM

Well, thats awkward: A white supremacist who made headlines worldwide for plotting to take over a town in North Dakota received the results of a DNA test and the results say hes 14 percent black.

And this all happened while cameras were rolling.

Craig Cobb, 61, who has tried to create a white enclave in tiny Leith, N.D., submitted a DNA sample to Trisha Goddards talk show and got the results back during a recent taping.

The UKs Daily Mail newspaper got a copy of the segment of the show, which is nationally syndicated by NBC, and posted video of the moment Goddard read out the results to Cobb in front of a studio audience.

Eighty-six percent European and, Goddard said, pausing as the audience started to cheer before she continued, 14 percent sub-Saharan African!

The audience erupted in cheers and laughs as a grinning Cobb began to protest.

Wait a minute, wait a minute, hold on, just wait a minute, Cobb said. This is called statistical noise.

Sweetheart, you have a little black in you, Goddard said.

Listen, Ill tell you this, oil and water dont mix!

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White supremacist takes DNA test, finds out he’s part black

MIDWEST CITY, Oklahoma -

Police in Midwest City were able to crack one of their unsolved cases, all thanks to DNA evidence found at the crime scene.

The police report states the homeowner and her son came home on January 1 of this year to find the front door had been kicked in and the house had been ransacked.

Midwest City police say whoever broke into the home on Christine Drive took the family's laptop, X-box, and jewelry.

Now, almost a year later, police have identified 20-year-old Darrell Eugene Black as one of the men responsible for at least one of the burglaries. The discovery comes thanks to DNA evidence left behind at the crime scene.

"With technology and forensics it enables us to find suspects that in the past we would have never been able to identify," said Assistant Police Chief Sid Porter with the Midwest City Police Department.

Midwest City police say it was a water bottle left behind at the crime scene that provided them with their crucial clue. Police found it inside the ransacked home.

"It's great, it's great," said Keisha Jones with Midwest City Police. "They don't always think about stuff like that."

Jones does forensics at the Midwest City Police Department and showed us exactly how easy it is for them to get a DNA sample of something a suspect may have sipped or touched. She says a person's DNA can stay on an undisturbed item for a very long time.

"I mean, if it's outside and it's getting weathered then obviously you can have lost DNA," explained Jones. "But if it's just sitting on someone's kitchen counter, and the homeowner comes home a month later because they were on vacation - then there's a very great chance you're going to get DNA."

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DNA On Water Bottle Leads To Suspect In MWC Burglary

Dead mans DNA found on the shoes of accused

Thursday, November 14, 2013

A Limerick murder trial has heard that DNA matching the dead mans was found on the clothing and shoes of one of the men accused of murdering him.

By Natasha Reid

Ian Flanagan, aged 24, brother of Sen, of the same address as his co-accused, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of assisting an offender on the same date. He is accused of removing a CCTV recording device from their house, knowing it might form evidence in a prosecution.

Forensic scientist John Hoade told the Central Criminal Court that he examined tracksuit bottoms and a pair of runners attributed to Sen Flanagan.

A mixed DNA profile was generated from the blood on the toe of the right runner, he said, explaining to the jury that it had DNA from two people. The major profile matched the deceaseds profile, he said, adding that the chance of another person having the same profile was less than one in 1,000 million.

A DNA profile generated from blood staining on the tracksuit bottoms also matched Mr McMahons profile, Mr Hoade added.

He was asked about the pattern of this staining.

The blood on the lower left leg of Sen Flanagans tracksuit bottoms was airborne, he said. Its my opinion that Sen Flanagan was in close proximity to Gerard McMahon when Mr McMahon was bleeding.

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Dead man’s DNA found on the shoes of accused

HOBBS, N.M. (KRQE) - A New Mexico police department is taking DNA testing to catch criminals to a whole new level.

Hobbs Police are not just swabbing for DNA at major crime scenes, but they are also gathering samples at all property crimes, too.

"Fingerprints are a fragile piece of evidence and there is a lot of things that will make them not pliable for evidence like smudges, gloves, things of that nature. But you can't change someone's DNA," said Hobbs Police Detective Robert Blanchard.

Hobbs police started testing for DNA at all property crimes like burglaries last December.

Most recently, Hobbs police were able to use the DNA testing to nab a thief who allegedly stole thousands of dollars worth of electronics and jewelry from a home in 2012.

"It was no greater pleasure to me than to call the victim and let her know I was able to solve the case," said Blanchard.

Police say almost one year ago, Donny Garza, 39, broke into a Hobbs home and stole nearly $5,000 worth of belongings, but according to police, he made a big mistake.

Investigators say sometime during the burglary, Garza drank two cans of soda and then left them inside the house.

"This person kept their house in very good order," said Blanchard. "She was able to go through and identify things that were out of place. Specifically, she identified two Dr. Pepper cans."

Police tested the cans for DNA, sent the swabs to the state lab and sure enough. Garza's DNA was a match.

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DNA test at property crime nabs thief