How many people believe DNA testing is reliable ?

What is DNA? DNA is also known as “deoxyribonucleic acid” every person's DNA is the same in every cell deoxyribonucleic acid is the basic building block for an individual's entire “genetic makeup” DNA Molecule

relatively a recent discovery!  DNA was discovered back in 1969  however it was first accepted into U.S courtrooms in the year 1985  in November 1987, Orlando prosecutors scored the first conviction in the U.S  since 1987 DNA has played an important part in many important cases

several factors effect DNA ! SUNLIGHT BACTERIA MOLD MOISTURE

Poor attempts !  The handling and care of DNA testing is very important  Getting DNA from a suspect is easy  however, getting DNA from crime scene can be much more challenging  A poor attempt at removal can end up destroying the evidence altogether

Freed because of DNA test !  Convicts have been freed of violent crimes using DNA test  Murder, rape, and many other violent crimes.  In recent years, dozens of people were jailed or scheduled for execution because of DNA evidence emptyempty

Prime example !  In 1974, James Bain was sent to prison for life  He was accused of raping a 9 yr. Old boy.  Bain provided an alibi, but was charged anyway  He spent 35 yrs. In prison before being released  DNA showed that he was the wrong man  The evidence in this trial was largely circumstantial. Wrongly Accused

No one compares !  245 convicts in the U.S. were convicted by DNA evidence since 1989  Of them 245 convicts not 1 has come close to spending as much time in prison as James Bain James Bain a FREE MAN

At trial !  FBI analyst was a witness  The semen on the underpants came from a person with blood group B  Bain’s blood group was tested to be AB  Bain could not be ruled out as the suspect Court House

100 % reliable  Despite evidence many people believe DNA testing is 100 % reliable  Supporters say that they have strong support in the innocence protection act  Which would increase prisoner access to post conviction DNA testing  Death penalty opponents account for many of the people that support post conviction

Supporters believe!  DNA test can clear the wrongly accused  DNA evidence can be used to establish identity to a high degree of certainty  such as rapes, homicides to armed robberies Armed Robbery

The other side !  Non’ supporters say that DNA testing is not one hundred percent accurate  They believe that there are many problems facing DNA  Some argue that granting requests for DNA tests in cases where it might be enough to prove innocence can also harm victims

Faking DNA evidence!  Scientists have demonstrated that it is possible to fake DNA evidence  They fabricated blood and saliva samples contained from a person other than donor  Also shown if access to a DNA profile database they could construct a sample of DNA to match without any tissue from that person

Ways to fake DNA !  Scientist showed 2 ways that they were able to fake DNA  One requires a very small DNA sample, possibly from a string of hair or a cup  Scientists amplified the tiny sample into a large number of DNA using a standard method called whole genome amplification

Very Costly !  Many people are not opposed to testing on a limited basis  They also warn such test would crowd the court system with “frivolous” requests  They argue that post conviction tests would only waste a lot of money

Public Survey !  Q.1- should DNA test be allowed in the courtroom  Q. 2- do you believe DNA evidence is reliable  Q. 3- do you think people that are already incarcerated should have the right to DNA testing

Conclusion ! DNA should not be allowed in the courtroom It is not 100 % reliable at all

Conclusion Cont.!  most compelling research- The strongest argument against DNA evidence in the courtroom is that it is not accurate  most interesting idea – Its very interesting an undergraduate student, not even a doctor, can fake DNA evidence.  That means a smart criminal could do it too.

Benefits !  Satisfaction with work – I think my senior project will benefit me because I am planning on going to college to study the field forensic science.  future research on knowledge attained – I plan to go into forensic science in college and I will definitely study this topic many times.

Audience !  I want you to pay attention more when you hear about DNA testing and don’t automatically assume someone is guilty because there DNA was found at a crime scene.