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Monday, March 14th, 2011

The forensic DNA laboratory of the University of the Western Cape (UWC) has been researching and developing a forensic kit to identify male perpetrators in rape cases. We heard last week that this kit has now been fully developed and is available to Crime Labs to help crack rape cases, specially in those cases where a victim has been raped by more than one perpetrator.

The UWC research team looked at local regions with high gene variability between individuals, and the kit they developed was thoroughly tested against South Africa’s different population groups. It had been proved that the kit would help increase the conviction rate in rape cases. The police currently use kits that analyse both female and male DNA but this can be confusing and cluttered. This kit will supplement those in use and will support circumstantial evidence.

The kit, developed under the leadership of Professor Sean Davidson together with Dr Eugenia dâ Amato, is similar to those made in America and Europe, but is more accurate with South Africa’s population groups, UWC’s An Wentzel said.

How does it work?

The test isolates information of the Y-chromosome — which is present only in males — and is able to narrow down suspects to the range of father, son or brother.

Why is it such a ‘breakthrough’?

Because father passes his Y-chromosome to his son, meaning that they have identical Y-chromosomes and therefore they would both be suspects based on Y-DNA evidence. Davidson said forensic pathologists could now pick up male DNA more easily in a rape case, and this made it more useful in identifying the rapist, with investigators able to narrow down the range of possible aggressors. “The technology is also good at excluding innocent men,” he said.

Davidson said the test takes “a matter of days”. However, it would not eliminate the time taken in the administration of DNA processing.
The findings and results have been welcomed by the international forensics community and has been hailed by UWC as a giant step forward for justice and rape victims in South Africa.

14 March 2011

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‘Familial Searching’ – an explanation

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011

“While the sins of the father should not be visited on the son, the sins of the son should not go unpunished because the sins of the father are ignored….”

We posted a poll on the website last week asking whether Familial DNA searching should be allowed in SA? [Familial Searching .i.e. a process by which an unidentified DNA profile is run through the state's DNA data-bank looking not for an exact match but for a close match that would identify a family member of an unidentified perpetrator and could point in the direction of potential suspects.]

Notwithstanding the fact that only 2 people have voted so far, it has caused quite a lot of debate on Facebook! As such, I though that I should use this opportunity to open the debate further, as Familial Searching for criminal intelligence as well as the identification of unidentified bodies is being used in more and more countries throughout the world. It is however not without controversy, and whilst in some cases has been used to identify a previously unknown suspect of a violent crime, it has sparked some debate. This is not to say that the information presented here represents the views of The DNA Project – I am simply going to try and present the facts as objectively as possible and hopefully receive some constructive comment on the subject from some of you who read this blog.

In those countries where Familial Searching is allowed, it is important to remember that searches are only conducted on the National DNA Databanks which hold the profiles of previously convicted offenders, crime scene profiles and arrestees who have not yet been convicted. Furthermore, a ‘hit’ when conducting a familial search, does not mean that that person is the suspect – it is simply an investigative lead which may lead the police to the actual suspect who committed the crime. A DNA Database for Criminal Intelligence is NOT a population database – in other words it is a database containing profiles of crime scene samples and convicted offenders & arrestees and not the general population. A familial search on a National DNA Database will therefore extend the size and reach of the DNA database to effectively include the parents, children and siblings of the offenders and arrestees whose DNA profiles are already stored in databases.

“Familial searching” is being used in some countries for efficient identification of possible crime suspects when traditional investigative efforts fail. Crime laboratories benefit from searching not just for perfect matches, but also for close ones, when trying to connect DNA from unsolved crimes to the DNA of known offenders whose DNA profiles are held in a national database. Because relatives share common DNA profiles, close matches can implicate family members as possible crime suspects.

As experience with familial searching increases, more and more countries will probably embrace the technique. And as they do, so does the need to create policies that will ensure both efficiency and accuracy in case selection, statistical thresholds and follow-up testing and investigation.

For those of you who would like to read more on the subject, the following report compiled by Sophie Rushton (July 2010) for the Australian & New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency looks at both the positive and negative aspect of Familial Searching and Predictive DNA Testing for Forensic Purposes: Report Familial Searching and Predictive DNA Testing 2010.

Case Solved – The Bloody Brick: Craig Harman

This was the first familial search in Great Britain in which the suspect was apprehended and convicted of the crime. In the early morning hours on March 21, 2003, Mr. Michael Little, a 53-year-old truck driver, was driving his truck on a highway in Surrey, when he drove beneath an overpass. A brick was thrown from the overpass and crashed through his windshield. It hit Mr. Little in his chest and caused fatal damage to the heart. Before Mr. Little died, he was able to bring his truck to a stop on the side of the road.

Michael Little

Source: BBC News
Monday, 15 March, 2004

Law enforcement analyzed the blood on the brick and found two DNA profiles, one of Mr. Little and one of another unknown individual. That evening, before the brick was thrown from the overpass, a car had been burglarized in the same town. The burglar could not get the car started and he left his blood at the scene.

The police were able to extract a full DNA profile and it matched the DNA profile on the brick which killed Mr. Little. The profile was run through the DNA Database, but no match was found.

Craig Harman

Source: BBC News
Wednesday, 4 October, 2006

However, the DNA analysis established that the offender was caucasian. A police profiler looked at the details of the crime, and suggested that he was under the age of 35. Also, Surrey police believed the killer lived locally and so authorities performed a DNA dragnet screen involving 350 people from the surrounding area who volunteered to give samples. But still no match was found.

Law enforcement then decided to perform a familial search of white males under the age of 35 living in Surrey or Hampshire. Twenty five people with similar DNA were located including a relative of the suspect whose DNA matched 16 of 20 DNA markers. They interviewed the relative and discovered that he had a 19-year-old brother, Craig Harman, who lived where the crime had occurred. Harman gave his DNA voluntarily and confessed. In April, 2004, Craig Harman pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 6 years.

Case where Familial Searching was used in the USA: It was an unfinished slice of pizza that led to the identification of Lonnie David Franklin Jr. as the prime suspect in the Grim Sleeper murder investigation. But the pizza was just the final clue leading to his arrest. The key break in the investigation, intermittently conducted over 25 years, came when investigators found a close — but not perfect — match between the DNA recovered at multiple crime scenes and a man being held in a California prison. Such a near-match strongly indicated that the person wanted by police was a close relative of the man in prison, and police soon focused on the man’s father, Lonnie Franklin. They put him under surveillance, obtained his discarded pizza and found that his DNA matched that recovered at a Grim Sleeper crime scene.

Click here for more stories on cases solved by Familial Searching.

Vanessa

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Project, Forensic Career, Latest News, Legislation, Links | 1 Comment »

The best Valentine’s Day Invite

Friday, February 18th, 2011

A strange topic you may think? Especially, if like me, you are not a fan of Valentine’s Day and all that it encompasses. However, having just landed in Cape Town from a trip to JHB last week, I received a call from General Phahlane, the Divisional Commissioner of the Forensic Lab, requesting that I please come and present at a Strategic Planning and Management Session in Mpumalanga on Monday, 14 Feb 2011. Now you can understand why it was the best Valentine’s Day invitation I have ever received!

Gen Phahlane & Col. Lindie Traut from the FSL with Willie Scholtz from the CJS

The purpose of the work session was to review the progress made with revamping the CJS and to plan the way forward with regard to the CJS within the FSL for the 2011/2012 fiscal Year. The work session formed part of the ongoing strategic planning processes currently underway in the Forensic Science Division, which is being spearheaded by its new head, Gen. Phahlane. My brief was to present to the Planning Team, The DNA Project’s overview of where we believe funds allocated to the FSL by the CJSR (Criminal Justice System Review – which you will recall was given R3bn over 3yrs) would be best spent in the forthcoming fiscal year, with a view to expanding the National DNA Database. What a brief! The Planning Team consisted not only of the Divisional Head of the FSL, but the head of the FSL and the LCRC and all of its top management staff. It was an honour to be invited to be part of this Session and an opportunity finally to be able to present all of our hard work and research over the last few years to such a focused group of people. In addition, the new management team of the FSL are one of the most hard working and dynamic group of people I have come across and they view the work of The DNA Project as an integral part of the review process, as opposed to an opposition group with a hidden agenda. For the first time in many years, Carolyn (who accompanied me to the session) and I felt that the tides had changed insofar as the FSL recognising the critical role it plays in the resolution of crime in South Africa.

The hour long presentation I gave was received with enthusiasm and most importantly, support. In a nutshell, The DNA Project believe the 3 key areas which need to be addressed are (1) Legislation (2) Capacity and (3) Awareness. The below slide, which come out of my presentation, captures the “How” we believe this can be achieved in SA:

Re: Legislation – despite the PC dragging their heels and insisting on embarking upon their overseas trip, the FSL are two steps ahead and have already implemented extensive strategies to increase their capacity by commencing on the building of two more National Labs in KZN and the Eastern cape – by de-centralising the Pretroia Lab, it will mean that provincial cases do not clog up the Pretoria process lines and obviously will result in an increase in samples loaded. Hand in hand with this development, they believe fully in training and awareness at the crime scene. As such, we have their support in promoting the Forensic Hons degree they have helped us develop and they will be participating in lectures at the tertiary institutions offering this course. As the FSL capacity increases, they envisage employing at least another 750 analysts and as such, the more skilled analysts they can employ the better. These strategies will ensure that the FSL’s implementation plan which they will need to prepare for Parliament, will have substance and vision, two elements key to the successful execution of the DNA Bill, when passed.

But mot importantly, where The DNAP and the FSL can work together in the most critical way, is through awareness at the crime scene – I spoke of a chain being as strong as its weakest link – and this means that with all of the above strategies in place, all will fail if we cannot collect the DNA evidence left at the crime scene by the perpetrator/s. We only have one chance to do this, and this is where the public/private partnership comes into play. If we can continue to create DNA Awareness and the importance of crime scene preservation amongst the general public and sectors of the community such as within private security companies, paramedics, trauma centres, justice and schools, then they can implement training and awareness amongst Crime Scene Examiners and first responding police officers.

This leads me to my final point which is that the expansion of the National DNA Database in South Africa, and its use as a crime intelligence tool (i.e. investigations driven by DNA, rather than DNA being considered simply a piece of evidence) requires the interplay between Justice, SAPS and the FSL and….the public – which is us, The DNA Project and YOU!

All of the above points made sense to the Planning Team and even more encouraging is that they were excited about some of the ideas I presented. We left the following day with renewed hope and energy and trust in our hearts, that the new management team are going to get it right and not just right, but they are willing and able to take DNA and its potential as an evidentiary tool, to a new level in SA. The Planning Session continued over the next couple of days, and we look forward to hearing how the 2011/2012 fiscal year is going to unfold. I have no doubt that it will be a space worth watching out for….

It was indeed a “Happy Valentine’s Day” – let’s hope in this case, all our dreams come true!

Vanessa

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Project, Forensic Career, Latest News, Legislation, Newsletter, Press | 1 Comment »

Envisioning the future of DNA in SA – someone has to do it!

Thursday, January 27th, 2011

We all know that DNA technologies have radically reshaped the role of forensics in police work throughout the world – well, that is everywhere perhaps but here in SA, where we unarguably need it the most. Even small amounts of blood, saliva, or other biological materials left at a crime scene can now lead to the identification or elimination of a suspect. Genetic evidence is being used both to convict perpetrators and to exonerate people who were wrongfully convicted on less reliable evidence, including scores of people on death row in the USA. We all know this. It is a fact. It is the future of successful police work, and that is why I am not ready nor willing to take off my gloves in our fight to make our Government recognise this all important fact.

Every now and again, I wake up and think – what is the point? All those nay-sayers who previously told me and still tell me – you will never get anywhere with our Government would love to prove me wrong and say, ‘I told you so’… But the point is, this is inevitable – just as the cell phone has become an indispensable instrument in every SA’s life, so too will the power of DNA and its use in resolving crime, become an indispensable tool in SA’s fight against crime. So when I heard this week that the Portfolio Committee have yet again postponed their overseas tour of the UK and Canada to , and I quote, “our winter”, ie July 2011, my initial reaction was despondency – but then I realised that they are simply delaying the inevitable – whilst they manipulate dates to ensure that their overseas trip at least falls within the European and Canadian summer (a much more pleasant time to journey, you will agree), we need to ensure that all the groundwork must continue to ensure that once that legislation is in place, we are ready for it:

1. DNA AWARENESS – this is critical, because unless we are aware that DNA is all prevalent on a crime scene, that crucial evidence will be lost, and of no further use. This applies to every officer, (be it police or security guard) paramedic or member of the public and as such, we will continue to embark upon our National DNA Awareness Campaign which offers free workshops to all these sectors as well as schools, community centres and trauma centres. The more people who know about the power of DNA, how to preserve it and how it can be used to link serial offenders to their crimes and ultimately prosecute them, the better.

2. DNA CAPACITY – we need to support our Forensic Labs, as the new legislation, when passed, will require a large amount of samples to be processed if our DNA Database is to be used as an intelligent database. To this end, more Universities need to take up our offer of hosting a Forensic DNA course at their institution (we have developed a Forensic Hons course which we provide to Universities free of charge), so that we have more qualified Forensic Analysts entering the labs. We also need to support the idea of allowing private DNA labs to assist the state forensic labs, certainly in the beginning, to process more samples to enter onto the DNA Database. This is an accepted practice all over the world, and in a country which is plagued by backlogs, there is no reason not to implement this system in SA.

3. GENETIC JUSTICE & THE LAW! – without proper legislation in place, convicted offenders remain free to leave prison without having had their DNA profile entered onto the DNA Database; the current DNA Database remains unregulated due to inadequate and outdated legislation attempting to define this area of the law; serial rapists and murderers remain at large and undetected because our Database cannot be utilised as an intelligent Database without proper legislation allowing it to be used as such. We need to put pressure on the Portfolio Committee to get a move on and review the DNA Bill, because one more delay will render their stated intentions to pass the Bill untruthful, without substance and against the will of the SA people.

Our plan for 2011 therefore is to rigourously promote DNA Awareness in the first part of the year. To this end we have a media plan and funding to help us spread this crucial awareness (remember DNA CSI!?) on a national basis. When the PC return from their overseas trip, ready, we trust to finally concentrate on actually reviewing the legislation, we hope that there will be a groundswell of South African’s fully aware of why DNA and its use in Forensics needs to form part of this country’s crime fighting strategy.

Let us know if you want us to host a free DNA Awareness workshop or lecture at your organisation, school, community centre, trauma centre or security company – simply email Maya at maya@dnaproject.co.za or call (021) 418-0647.

with thanks

Vanessa

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Detective, DNA Project, Forensic Career, Latest News, Legislation, Newsletter | 1 Comment »

Forensic Science Service (UK) to be closed down

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

The government-owned Forensic Science Service, which employs 1,600 people, is to be wound up – closing by 2012.

Crime Reduction Minister James Brokenshire said the Birmingham-based service was losing about £2m a month and could run out of money in January.

Its evidence was key to the arrest of serial killer Steve Wright and in the case of missing girl Shannon Matthews.

The Prospect union, representing 1,000 FSS professionals, said the decision made a “mockery” of the justice system.

Its deputy general secretary Mike Clancy said: “Cost will now determine justice in the UK. The government is putting its faith in an untested market to deliver forensic science at a time when it has never been more important to the detection of crime.”

The decision would “destroy a world-class body” that was envied by international police and lead to an over-emphasis in profits in the sector which could threaten the quality of the science, he added.

However, the FSS had faced increased private-sector competition for police contracts and Mr Brokenshire told the BBC this was enabling forces to achieve greater efficiency.

“They’re seeing better turnaround in terms of the way in which forensics are being processed,” he said.

In a statement, the FSS said spending cuts meant police forces had less money for forensics consultancy and were increasingly taking such work in-house.

It said it had raised such concerns to the Home Office and was “disappointed” that they had not been addressed before the winding-up decision was made.

In a written statement to MPs, Mr Brokenshire had said it was vital for the government to take “clear and decisive action” to sort out the FSS after it got into “serious financial difficulty”.
“The police have advised us that their spend on external forensic suppliers will continue to fall over the next few years as forces seek to maximise efficiencies in this area,” he said.

“We have therefore decided to support the wind-down of the FSS, transferring or selling off as much of its operations as possible.”

DNA evidence gathered by the FSS led to the arrest of Ipswich murderer Wright within days of the discovery of his fifth victim.

The company also provided toxicology evidence against Karen Matthews and Michael Donovan which helped ensure their conviction for kidnapping and drugging schoolgirl Shannon.

BBC legal affairs analyst Clive Coleman said the FSS had enjoyed significant successes and had a good reputation, despite one or two failures such as the Damilola Taylor murder inquiry where DNA evidence was initially missed.

He said private enterprise, which already made up 40% of the market, should expand to fill the gap left behind by the FSS.

However, there were concerns that commercial pressures might mean additional tests and analysis were no longer done.

“There is a concern from some lawyers that perhaps if you’re simply looking at the bottom line… critical evidence might not come to light and be produced in court,” he added.

The FSS has been government-owned since 2005.

Scotland is unaffected by the announcement, as the Scottish Police Services Authority is responsible, while Nothern Ireland has its own agency, Forensic Science Northern Ireland.

Article courtesy of http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11989225

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Meeting the new General of the FSL

Thursday, December 2nd, 2010

I was in Johannesburg and Pretoria today where I met with two very interesting and influential people – one government, one private.

The first, General Phahlane, is the newly appointed head of the Forensic Science Lab [which, remember, consists of 6 different forensic divisions, only one of which is Biology (DNA)]. The General has taken over from the former Div. Commissioner, Piet du Toit and has a very different managerial style to his predecessor. For one, he promotes opens lines of communications, and whilst I sense that he is definitely not a man to be crossed, he encourages support and input so long as it is constructive. The General acknowledges that the current system is far from perfect, however, he is tackling the issues head on and apparently, transparently, and from all accounts runs a very tight ship too. His random appearance within the lab at any given time, certainly ensures that the people working there are on the ball at all times, and I believe this approach has enabled him to boast substantial inroads into the DNA backlog, that is constantly being raised as an issue. The General believes that NGO’s have a critical role to play in making fundamental changes in SA – more importantly, he supports our objectives and has a particular interest in the DNA Awareness campaign we have embarked upon throughout South Africa as he too understands how vital a part the preservation of crime scene evidence plays. His passion to eradicate crime in SA is palpable, and I truly look forward to watching the changes I believe he is going to make in developing a strategy to expand the DNA Database in SA. It is abundantly clear that he comprehends and embraces the significant role a criminal intelligence database plays in SA as opposed to simply a DNA Database, and that more profiles = a more powerful database for crime detection and resolution, but ultimately prevention.

Vanessa Lynch with General Phahlane and Colonel Shezi at the Pretoria FSL

I was also greatly relieved to hear that Colonel Shezi, who attended the meeting, will be accompanying the Portfolio Committee on their overseas study tour to the UK and Canada next year. The General confirmed that at least her trip had been approved, so I am assuming from that information, that the remainder of the Committee members must too have a final agenda. This reinforces the statement made by MP, Annelize van Wyk on SABC1 (“It’s your Right”) last week, that the tour has been scheduled for late January 2011 and that deliberations on the DNA Bill would commence in February on their return; and… that she anticipated that it would be finalised by mid 2011. We won’t of course be holding our breath that they will stick to those timelines, as reviewing legislation is not a cut and dry affair, BUT, at least it is finally being publicly spoken about and is now openly on the agenda.

The other person I met was the CEO of the Security Industry Alliance. The concept of introducing DNA Awareness Training as an industry standard amongst all private security personnel was discussed. In other words, we host “Train the Trainer” workshops so that all security companies are enabled to incorporate DNA Awareness Training as part of their standard crime scene management training. I am putting together a proposal this week which will formulate a plan to incorporate this type of awareness from the top down. This is very exciting, as it may well mean, that DNA Awareness becomes part and parcel of all first responding officers’ training — again, it underlies the objective we are very passionate about — and that is that you only have a limited opportunity to preserve crime scene evidence, without which all the laws in the land and fancy labs are rendered meaningless.

Let’s hope that our simple acronym DNA CSI becomes as well known in SA as Coca Cola!

Vanessa

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DNA: The crime-fighting tool that needs to be used

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

This article was featured in The Witness, 3 Sep 2010 on Page 9.

DNA: The crime-fighting tool that needs to be used
03 Sep 2010

Dr Carolyn Hancock, a Director of The DNA Project

EARLIER this year Rudi Venter, who had been charged with the murder of his wife, walked out of court a free man. DNA evidence had determined he was innocent.

Venter’s wife was beaten to death with a baseball bat at their Johannesburg home in 2006. At the time, Venter said he had returned home after taking his children to school and seen two men running from the house before finding his critically injured wife. Venter was arrested for her murder a year later. Just before he was due to go to trial in February, his legal team asked an expert to interpret the DNA results from material found at the scene. It was found that DNA samples obtained at the scene contained the blood of Venter’s wife and two unidentified men. Venter’s blood was not present anywhere. Consequently, the state withdrew the murder charge.

If the DNA found at the scene had been processed at the time as a matter of routine, Venter would not have spent four years with a murder charge hanging over him.

“DNA does not only prove guilt, but it can also prove innocence,” says Dr Carolyn Hancock, a director of the DNA Project and a former genetics lecturer at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

“In the United States, 258 people have been freed from prison on the basis of DNA results. The average time they had spent in prison was 13 years. Seventeen of them were on death row for crimes they never committed.”

Currently, this cannot happen in South Africa as the processing of DNA for forensic purposes by the South African Police Force Forensic Science Laboratory is prioritised according to five categories. Top of the list is a request from prosecutors when they have a suspect. The laboratory then undertakes to do a complete DNA analysis within 120 days or by trial date.

Bottom of the list are those cases with no known suspect. “This is what we believe should change,” says Hancock. “With a DNA database, reoffenders would immediately be identified.”

For this to happen, aspects of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1977 need to be amended in order for the country’s police force to be able to routinely use DNA for forensic purposes. The act is out of date; back in 1977, nobody had started using DNA for forensic purposes and consequently the act doesn’t specifically regulate the use of DNA for criminal intelligence purposes.

To address this omission, the Criminal Law Forensic Procedures Amendment Bill was drafted in 2008. It deals with the use of DNA and looks to allow police access to fingerprint databases other than their own, such as those of the departments of home affairs and transport, which routinely take fingerprints for identification purposes.

The draft bill was subsequently divided into two parts — one dealing with fingerprints, the other with DNA. The fingerprint legislation has been adopted. As a result, in addition to about five million fingerprints recorded by the SAPF, the police will now be allowed to search the other databases and access around 33 million fingerprints.

The DNA part of the bill is on hold while the parliamentary portfolio committee overseeing the bill reviews presentations regarding the issue and travels overseas to see how DNA analysis is done in other countries. It is unlikely that any decision will be made on the bill until next year.

If the bill is passed, which seems likely, capacity issues will have to be addressed if it is to be implemented effectively. One solution, given the lack of capacity of the SAPF, would be to outsource work to private laboratories.

“The capacity does exist out there to make this work,” says Hancock. “The immediate demand could be met. The use of private labs for the analysis of reference samples taken from arrestees would be a short-term solution, but they are used everywhere else and it is regarded as international best practice.”

But there remains a need for more qualified personnel within the SAPF and to that end, Hancock, as part of an initiative funded by the sponsors of the DNA Project, has been instrumental in developing a post-graduate qualification in forensic DNA analysis so that the state will have access to well-qualified personnel. This degree is already being offered at the University of the Free State and will be offered next year at the University of Cape Town. “The course material is freely available to any South African post-graduate institution,” she says.

Although the draft bill might be on hold, the DNA Project is promoting and publicising the use of DNA analysis in the fight against crime. The DNA Project is a non-profit, public-benefit organisation lobbying for the expansion of a national DNA database and it proposes that DNA profiles be created from DNA samples collected from crime scenes and from all those suspected or convicted of a crime.

“In this country, such a database would be hugely beneficial because of the number of criminals who reoffend,” says Hancock. “If you get them on the database the first time they commit an offence, then if you don’t convict them for their first offence you will hopefully do so when they reoffend.”

The DNA Project has just launched a new campaign aimed at promoting DNA awareness in South Africa. “We are primarily targeting community police forums and security companies,” says Hancock.

“The latter are often the first on a crime scene. You press a panic button and they are the first to respond. We want to ensure that anyone who is first at a crime scene ensures that any DNA evidence is preserved as it can easily be contaminated or destroyed. This evidence should be collected by trained SAPF crime-scene investigators.”

This nation-wide campaign sees the DNA Project offering free DNA awareness workshops to educate people as to the benefits of utilising DNA evidence for crime detection and prevention, and the need to contain and not contaminate a crime scene. “We would like to offer these workshops, which are free of charge, to those who are likely to be the first to arrive at a crime scene. For example, first responding officers, security guards, police reservists and paramedics.”

The DNA project is hoping to get this message to 10 000 people this year and they also have government funding to reach as many schoolchildren as possible. “Genetics is part of the school curriculum,” says Hancock, “and forensics is something they study — and many of them watch CSI on TV.”

The workshops will provide a basic understanding of how DNA profiling can be used to assist in criminal investigations in South Africa and the importance of preserving DNA evidence which may be at a crime scene. “This is essential as no matter how good our legislation or our laboratories are”, says Hancock, “we need to have the evidence properly preserved and collected at the crime scene.”

FORENSIC DNA evidence plays a vital role in criminal investigations because it can identify and help convict a suspect who is guilty of committing a crime or prove the innocence of a suspect who has been wrongly accused of a crime.

WHAT IS DNA? WHERE IS IT FOUND IN THE BODY?

DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic acid. This is the name for the chemical which is found in almost every cell in the human body and which is the blueprint or recipe for that person’s characteristics. Everyone’s DNA is unique (unless they have an identical twin). A person’s DNA is also exactly the same in every cell of their body. For example, the DNA pattern, also known as the DNA profile, in a human’s blood is the same as the DNA in his or her skin cells, body tissue, semen and saliva, which makes it possible to compare crime-scene evidence such as semen stains, saliva on cigarette butts and blood on clothing, with DNA obtained from a blood sample or cheek scraping taken from a suspect.

WHAT IS A DNA PROFILE?

A DNA profile is simply a unique list of letters and numbers obtained from a person’s DNA that acts as a personal identifier. A DNA profile contains no information about a person’s physical characteristics, their mental predisposition or anything about their medical his-tory. In the same way as fingerprints link a suspect to a crime, DNA provides scientific evidence that can identify or exclude a suspect from a police investigation. It can also be used to identify a victim through DNA from relatives, even when a body cannot be found. DNA profiling can also link two or more crime scenes. When evidence from one crime scene is compared with evidence from another, the police can tell whether it was the same person who had committed two different crimes. Even very old cases, which the police thought would never be solved, may contain DNA evidence that can be used to identify the person who committed that crime.

HOW CAN DNA HELP TO IDENTIFY A SUSPECT?

Once DNA samples have been collected from a crime scene and processed at the Forensic Science Laboratory, the DNA profile, which is the identification number taken from the DNA sample, can be compared with the DNA profiles taken from a known suspect. If no known suspect exists, the DNA profile taken from the crime scene is still valuable, as when it is entered onto the national DNA database, the police can see whether that DNA profile links to another known DNA profile on the DNA database or perhaps it may even link several different crimes to each other.

— DNA Project.

DNA DOES NOT ONLY PROVE GUILT, BUT IT CAN ALSO PROVE INNOCENCE. IN THE UNITED STATES, 258 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN FREED FROM PRISON ON THE BASIS OF DNA RESULTS. THE AVERAGE TIME THEY HAD SPENT IN PRISON WAS 13 YEARS. SEVENTEEN OF THEM WERE ON DEATH ROW FOR CRIMES THEY NEVER COMMITTED.

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Detective, DNA Project, Forensic Career, Latest News, Legislation, Links, Newsletter, Press | No Comments »

Murder mystery in JHB

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

Many of you may have heard of our very own “DNA Detective”, Prof Valerie Corfield? Renowned for her innovative and inventive teaching methodologies, Prof. Valerie Corfield is one of our appointed DNA Awareness trainers, based in the Western Cape. If you haven’t seen her in action, you should put it on your ‘bucket list’. Prof Corfield has the ability to transcend all boundaries in such a way that you are not even aware that you are actually learning something at the same time.

Learning about 'ice breakers' in training from Prof Corfield

Prof Corfield in action

Next week the ‘Prof. of DNA’ will facilitate a murder mystery evening in JHB at the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre to raise awareness about DNA technology in South Africa. If you can, I encourage you to go and play ‘CSI detective’ with this DNA Detective on Tuesday, 7 September at 6:30 pm. You will enjoy an evening full of plots, sub plots, intrigue and numerous contradictions as you determine the modus operandi and sift through multiple motives to identify the murderer. The Prof will make you interview witnesses and suspects, gather evidence and decide for yourself what really happened one dark night in Newtown.

But in all seriousness, the murder mystery evening at Sci-Bono has actually been designed to allow you to explore the science of DNA profiling and find out more about how forensic DNA databases can be used as a tool to catch criminals. You will be invited to join the discussion about the ethics of DNA profiling and decide for yourself if South Africa needs a criminal intelligence DNA database.

TITLE: MYSTERIOUS MURDER OF DR. NOALL X PLOR – DNA profiling in South Africa.

DATE: Tuesday 7 September

TIME: 6:30 pm for 7:00 pm

VENUE: The Sci-Bono Discovery Centre

RSVP: speaktoascientist@sci-bono.co.za or call Refilwe Pico at 011 639 8448

In the meantime we have been extremely busy making contact with countless security companies, police reservist clusters, paramedics, CPF’s and any other groups whose personnel may arrive first on a crime scene – we have been offering FREE DNA Awareness workshops throughout South Africa in an effort to educate people about the importance of preserving DNA evidence at a crime scene and how that evidence can be used in helping solve crime. We have qualified trainers in most provinces and have printed materials which we hand out to trainees FREE of charge to facilitate these workshops.

Workshop in JHB at Tracker being filmed by SS1

We have raised the funds to create this awareness, yet it is amazing how slow organizations have been to take up this incredible opportunity. There is no catch. This is what we are about – we want to promote DNA awareness in South Africa and the more people who are aware of its amazing potential in crime fighting, the better. Please – contact us so that we can arrange a workshop for your organization or CPF – alternatively SPREAD the word. We can have all the legislation, scientists, facilities and equipment in place – but if we don’t preserve the evidence for proper collection – all that is worth nothing.

Please let us know if you or your organization would be interested in helping us host a training session/s and we will send you further information. Email Maya, our training coordinator at maya@dnaproject.co.za

with thanks

Vanessa

ps – below a few images from some of our workshops held in Gauteng and KZN.

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Detective, DNA Project, Events, Latest News, Links | No Comments »

DNA Laws are being passed everywhere but here!

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Many of you may have caught Carte Blanche last night where I was interviewed on behalf of The DNA Project (click here if you missed the Carte Blanche interview). The overwhelming message was that we urgently need to pass DNA legislation in SA in order to utilize our DNA Database in such a way that it provides criminal intelligence. DNA is the gold standard for criminal investigation throughout the world and yet here in SA, where it is needed the most, we are being held to ransom by the members of Parliament who have yet to resume deliberations on the DNA Bill.

Why? Why are our Parliamentarians so slow on the uptake to implement laws to regulate this amazing technology which we have at our disposal?

The first phase of the DNA Bill which dealt with fingerprints was adopted in March 2010 – it is now August 2010 and we have not heard a word from the Portfolio Committee as to when they will be returning to Parliament to consider Phase Two – DNA. The World Cup is over, and everyone else seems to have gone back to ‘business as usual’, but every inquiry I make as to the whereabouts of the people who are supposed to be looking at this bill, are met with a blank stare or worse yet, “I don’t know”. This is unacceptable. But what can we do about it? We can speak up! That’s what.

Have a look at the following link: http://www2.wnct.com/news/2010/jul/15/13/dna-sample-testing-system-expanded-new-nc-law-ar-300849/

Don’t you wish we had more politicians who acted like the Governor of North Carolina in the USA, Bev Perdue? How many of our politicians have been effected by a violent crime just like she was? But what are they doing about it?

Perdue calls DNA testing the 21st-century fingerprint and she believes it will help prevent violent crime across her state. “In many, many cases DNA becomes the difference maker,” says Governor Bev Perdue. Starting in February, police across North Carolina will take DNA samples from anyone charged with murder, rape, or other violent felony crimes. The General Assembly passed the bill in July 2010. Officers say it will prevent crime and solve cold cases. “It also helps us exonerate the innocent because it is so precise,” said Roy Cooper, North Carolina Attorney General.

Perdue says DNA samples will keep repeat offenders off the streets, preventing crimes like the murder of her dear friend Kathy Taft.

“This became personal to me especially because one of my 30-year best friends was murdered during the spring,” said Perdue. DNA testing was used to bring Taft’s murderer to justice in May this year.

The North Carolina State law enforcement has solved nearly 1,400 crimes using the existing DNA database. Now with earlier testing, they’re looking to solve even more.

And I love this message from Perdue for lawmakers who still call DNA testing unreasonable search and seizure. “We have 21st century science and technology that allows us to catch really bad people faster and it is really unreasonable for the elected leaders and all of us to not move forward to make our streets as safe as we can,” she said. Hear! Hear! (wish you were here!)

Attorney General Roy Cooper says the law has privacy safe guards. It’s a felony to misuse DNA and law officers will delete DNA records from the state’s database if the person is acquitted or their charges are dismissed. In addition, Law enforcement from the local level to the SBI will now of course have new responsibilities and they’ll undergo training on how to use the swabbing kits for collecting DNA.

Now, how difficult could that be to implement in SA? What exactly is preventing us from writing a story like the one above?

Vanessa

ps. since writing this blog, one of the portfolio committee members tasked with reviewing the bill has responded to my email requesting further information on the lack of progress of the bill – see the below commentary to follow what has transpired to date. I will continue to post the responses as I receive them. V.

Posted in DNA Detective, DNA Project, Forensic Career, Latest News, Legislation, Links, Newsletter, Press | 5 Comments »

Where have all the police gone?

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

It seems that most things are back to ‘business as usual’ post the world cup, which took not only SA, but the rest of the world by storm. We seem to have been left with a wonderful sense of goodwill, patriotism, and a realisation, that if our Government really wanted to, they could control crime…. The stats on crime levels over the World Cup period are going to be released at the end of the year, and it will be interesting to see whether the crime rates rose thereafter. We all know they decreased over Jun/Jul, so only time will tell if the ‘back to business as usual’ principle applies to our SA Government relapsing into not being able to control the crime spiral we have come to live with.

Basically it all boils down to VISIBLE POLICING! They implemented it in NYC to great effect; the Western Cape have been pushing for it over the last few years to good effect and it was used during the World Cup to demonstrate how effective it really is. We should be pushing for visible policing as one of our basic rights in this country and must be careful not to fall down the slippery slope of complacency and acceptance the further we move away from the “Great World Cup”.

My last blog published a tender from the State Forensic Lab inviting private labs to bid for business to assist the state labs with processing capacity. I received a number of queries subsequent to this blog entry around why it is important and what it means for SA. The below questions and answers hopefully cover most of the issues raised, but please feel free to email me should any other issues surrounding this bid remain unclear:

Why is this bid important and what does it mean for The DNA Project and SA?
A dynamic common to most countries that implement forensic DNA databases is the necessary development of a private sector market. This is a natural result of the passage of database legislation. Few country laboratory infrastructures were designed with forensic DNA databasing in mind. And the passage of legislation results in an immediate and large volume of offender testing that needs to be accomplished in order for the database to be effective. Also, offender sample testing is conducive to automation and doesn’t require the same level of “bench” expertise that law enforcement crime scene specialists should be doing. Ultimately, private sector automation is a more cost effective way to approach such testing. The development of a private sector market contributes to cost efficiencies. In the United States, when databasing first began, offender samples were being analyzed at approximately $80 per sample. Because of competition, samples are now analyzed at less than $30 per offender sample. The DNAP has engaged widely with private forensic labs throughout South Africa who are willing to assist the state labs with their throughput capacity. We welcome this move by the state forensic labs to explore future private-public partnerships in order to facilitate the backlog and implementation plan proposed by the police to the portfolio committee to ensure the ultimate success of the legislation.

There are three parts to the tender (apart from the general laboratory requirements): Training of SAPS personnel to collect non-invasive samples; DNA extraction/non extraction and the actual profile laboratory service. The difficulty for anyone submitting a bid will be the lack of detail and commitment from SAPS FSL.

Service providers are advised to submit their questions and concerns to the office of SAPS SCM (Ms Jacobeth Majola) where the bid documents were collected.

In order to make any commitment, a laboratory service provider would need guaranteed sample numbers before making the substantial instrument and infrastructure investments. A one year contract is simply too short to recoup the investment. By the time the tender is awarded some months would have been lost from the twelve month period. Next will be the time required to train SAPS personnel to collect samples before a single sample can be run. However, if the database is to include, for example, all current and future prison inmates, SAPS and military personnel this could be a starting point to submit potential sample numbers for profiling. This would assist potential service providers drawing up a business plan and possibly submitting a meaningful bid.

(1) The training of police officials to take non-intimate samples is not dependent on the Forensic Amendment Bill. The new National Heath Bill regulations permit SAPS officials to take non-intimate samples— hence SAPS require that officials at all Police Stations are trained to take the non-intimate samples when the contract is awarded. Thus officials will not be required to take suspects to a medical practitioner anymore to take the non-intimate sample- provided they are trained in terms of the National Health Regulations.   (2) It may be unlikely that the same service provider who will perform the DNA testing services will also be performing the training of officials to take the non-intimate samples.  * the lab performing the testing will not be required to train officials to take samples * until the legislation is finalised, there will not be large scale DNA testing services required by the private laboratories- pilot projects will be run * the bids do however provide SAPS an opportunity through a formal process to report to parliament on the interested capacity of service providers   . (3) Service providers must bid on their existing DNA testing capacity (indicate what is the absolute minimum quantities that will justify them to provide the service) and also indicate what expansion they are capable/willing to do and lead time to provide the increased sample typing service.   (4) The fact of one year for a contract being too short has been noted by and communicated to the appropriate SAPS principals.

The Portfolio Committee will be looking closely at the private sector capacity on their return from their overseas tour of International Forensic Labs, and as such it is vitally important that the private sector come on board to assist the state labs with processing capacity – the more profiles that are processed and entered onto the database, the greater the chance of a match being made.

Finally, here is an opportunity for the good guys to make money out of crime! Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.

Vanessa