Bone marrow donors risk DNA identity mix-up

IT SOUNDS like an open-and-shut case: a clear DNA match is made between semen from a serious sexual assault and a blood sample from a known criminal. Yet in a recent case from Alaska, the criminal in question was in jail when the assault took place. And forensic scientists had already matched the crime sample to the DNA profile of another person who was their prime suspect. It was only after careful detective work that the mystery was solved: the jailed man had received bone marrow from the suspect many years earlier.

This week, at a meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics in Salt Lake City, Utah, Abirami Chidambaram of the Alaska State Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory in Anchorage described the case to highlight the danger of miscarriages of justice.

Given the retribution that can be doled out to sex offenders by other jail inmates, the consequences could be severe. "If you implicate the wrong person, they can be killed in prison," says Chidambaram.

"As forensic DNA databases grow and more people undergo bone marrow transplants, the risk of a miscarriage of justice increases"

When Chidambaram discovered the perplexing match, she initially thought there had been a sample mix-up. But there was no mistake. What's more, the jailed man and suspect shared the same surname.

Because medical records are confidential, a detective had to make further enquiries among family and friends of the two men. That revealed that not only were the convict and suspect brothers, but the inmate had received a bone marrow transplant from his brother. As a result, his blood was populated with cells bearing his brother's DNA profile.

It's an instance of life imitating art: in November 2004, US TV channel NBC broadcast an episode of Law and Order: Special victims unit in which a rapist nearly got away with his crimes because of a similar bone-marrow mix-up.

The chances of cases like this arising are very low. But as forensic DNA databases expand, and more people undergo marrow transplants, the risk of a miscarriage of justice will increase. "It makes sense for investigators to be savvy to this," says David Lazer of Harvard University, who studies the policy issues surrounding forensic DNA testing.

Until recently, bone marrow transplants involved destroying the patient's own bone marrow. In such cases their blood will contain the DNA profile of the donor alone. But some treatments in recent years, such as therapies to treat sickle cell disease, retain some of the patient's original bone marrow, so their blood can contain a mixed DNA profile.

Mixed profiles can also occur when DNA is collected from swabs taken from the inside of the cheek, rather than blood samples. This practice is already standard in the UK and is increasingly being used by US police.

Cheek cells of a bone marrow recipient will contain mostly their own DNA, but can become contaminated with the donor's DNA over time. So police may have to check both blood and cheek samples to be sure of spotting a transplant recipient.

Lazer believes it would cost too much to routinely check both types of sample to confirm whether a suspect has received a bone marrow transplant, and Helen Ng, spokeswoman for the US National Marrow Donor Program, based in Minneapolis, stresses that it would happen only very rarely. "I hope it doesn't prevent people giving patients what they need," she says.

But Chidambaram argues that potential marrow donors should be informed of the small risk of their DNA profile turning up in a crime database if the recipient later commits an offence.

By Peter Aldhous 1 November 05

Related:

Corrupt police planting DNA evidence at crime scenes
"Covert collection of DNA material may provide opportunities for improper use of samples, potential for substitution and unauthorised disseminations," one document says. Others have raised concerns about corrupt police planting DNA evidence at crime scenes.

DNA database fears
UK: IN the relatively short period of time since it was discovered, DNA fingerprinting has become one of the most powerful weapons in the armoury of the police.

The ABC for good or evil?
He had a suspect that he wanted to find guilty based on the chances of a spouse killing a spouse which were greater in anycase, at least more likely than that of a stranger.

First Grabs To Control Our DNA
A small company in Australia has been subjected to gross denials of rights after DNA database technology was stolen from it's company. This one year saga has spawned them to form a new approach to projects of importance to all people.

Worries over DNA and racial profiling
UK: Black men are four times more likely than White men to be on the national DNA database and there is growing concern about racial profiling in criminal investigations.

Lab's Errors Force Review of 150 Virginia DNA Cases
US: WASHINGTON, - A sharply critical independent audit found that Virginia's nationally recognized central crime laboratory had botched DNA tests in a leading capital murder case. The findings prompted Gov. Mark Warner to order a review of the lab's handling of testing in 150 other cases as well.

Witch-hunt targets scientists
QLD: SCIENTISTS at the John Tonge Centre are being threatened with jail in the wake of a government hunt for the source of leaks highlighting serious problems in the forensic laboratories.

Fresh swipe at DNA labs
Scientist Kris Bentley, whose departure yesterday follows that of forensic biologist Deanna Belzer after concerns about "inaccurate" DNA results and unvalidated equipment, issued a scathing resignation letter leaked to The Courier-Mail.

DNA leads 'CSI' cold-case squad to first arrest?
Frozen case? I don't really know what to say about them until they come up with their case. They say it involves DNA evidence but that's the only stuff we know.

Criminal's DNA filed under relative's name
The New South Wales Opposition is calling for an investigation into claims that police have entered DNA data for serious offenders under incorrect names.

DNA fingerprinting 'no longer foolproof'...
The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.

THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT!
PROFESSOR BARRY BOETTCHER: Now, there should be a law enacted within Queensland so that when cases come up like this they can be brought to attention and if an appropriate authority such as a judge of your Supreme Court considers that it merits further inquiry, an inquiry be ordered.

'Rape' officer clears his name
UK: A former policeman has been cleared of rape after protesting his innocence for 15 years. Judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that Brian Kelly, 47, had suffered a miscarriage of justice over crucial DNA evidence.

New unit investigates unsolved deaths?
A new police unit has been established to investigate more than 360 unsolved deaths in New South Wales, with many of the deaths dating back more than 30 years.

Prisoner's bid for review denied
Prisoner Roger Cheney has lost a Supreme Court action to have a judicial review of his 1993 convictions an 30-year jail sentence. Justice Shaw said he was concerned about the prisoner's claim that DNA evidence held by the police could prove his innocence. Although Cheney had requested the results of the DNA tests, he had been denied access to the forensic analysis.

QLD Prisoners DNA Bid THE curious case of Queensland's "cat lady" murder is set to test the state's legal authorities again, with the man convicted of the killing asking the Attorney-General to take the unprecedented step of releasing blood samples for DNA retesting.

Database clears up crimes?
NSW Police Minister John Watkins said at the launch of a Sydney conference of international forensic experts meeting to mark 100 years of fingerprinting in NSW. He said the collection of DNA from prisoners and suspects in NSW during the past two years had led to more than 5,400 matches on the forensic database.

A Question of Innocence
Katrina Bolton: The promise of DNA freeing the innocent as well as convicting the guilty has been repeated by politicians across Australia, usually while DNA laws are being expanded. The promise was made as a national DNA database, ‘Crimtrac’ was created, and it was made as NSW introduced legislation giving unprecedented powers to take DNA samples from prisoners, by force if necessary.

Weak Carr Government suspends Innocence Panel
It's a callous disregard for justice! The panel takes applications from convicted prisoners for DNA evidence to be analysed a move that may help in a future court appeal.

JUST BEAT IT! Govt lauds crime-solving technology?
The New South Wales Government says advances in crime solving technology are helping the progress of hundreds of police investigations.

DNA testing causes debate in murder case
The use of voluntary DNA testing in the investigation of a murder case in New South Wales has been applauded by victim support groups who are ill informed about the process said Justice Action's spokesperson Gregory Kable.

Abolition of double jeopardy law a political stunt: NSW Opp
Why draconian laws? What about the re-trial by media that goes along with it? Twice shy?

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The NSW government has finally appointed somebody (Justice John Nader) to head up its Innocence Panel and has produced leaflets and forms for people convicted of serious crimes (eg murder) to apply for DNA testing if they believe it may help prove their innocence. You can get the info by phoning 1300 881 717 or writing to the panel at GPO Box 45 Sydney NSW 2001.

Is the Westminster System flawed?
Most people would say Lady Di got the boot and NSW has so much trouble getting the Innocence Panel moving. I said hey, what's going on!

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank. The Herald reported 25 Nov 02 "a DNA saliva swab led to the charging of a former prisoner with the bashing murder of a woman. Police had been unable to find any witnesses or suspects following the murder in Sydney's inner city two years ago. Detectives had admitted they faced a tough job finding the killer."

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

DNA yours or mine?
Now they have isolated two genes that they say tells you if you're more likely to be depressed. What does that mean? It could mean that you should stay in jail because you are more likely than not to continue your offending behaviour according to a Department of Corrective Services Forensic Psychiatrist.

DNA = Do Not Assume - DNA Controversies!
The national DNA database of all known offenders proposed by Prime Minister Tony Blair could mean that innocent people will be accused of crimes they did not commit.

DNA Evidence of Bipartisanship
Last week the U.S. Congress passed the Justice for All Act, which includes provisions of the Innocence Protection Act. As of this posting, the legislation has not yet been signed by President Bush. Attached is an analysis of the legislation prepared by the Justice Project.

Unfaithful Lees admits taking drugs, court told

AUSTRALIA: NT: Key witness Joanne lees, has testified in the Northern Territory Supreme Court to smoking Marijuana on the night her boyfriend Peter Falconio went missing.

Yesterday she told the court how unfaithful she was to her boyfriend and that she'd even had an affair. But for some reason Lees wasn't a suspect in her own boyfriends killing?

Show trial

Lees has accused Bradley John Murdoch of Peter Falconio death but until the alleged strong DNA evidence appeared late in the police investigation there was probably no case at all.

DNA results that just happened to appear now place Bradley John Murdoch at the crime scene and no doubt have helped the police case against the accused.

Murdoch: Ambushed by Prosecution

DNA 'links accused to Falconio camper' ?

AUSTRALIA: NT-Through the smell of an oily rag - A FORENSIC expert allegedly has produced vital evidence ahead of the Peter Falconio murder trial linking his alleged killer to the camper van driven by the dead man and his girlfriend, Joanne Lees?

Surprising!

Dr Jonathan Whitaker, a British DNA expert, told a pre-trial hearing that a new testing technique had identified fragments of DNA belonging to the accused, Bradley John Murdoch, at the crime scene. It is the first time that the damning DNA evidence has been heard, because previous orthodox forensic tests by Northern Territory officers had proved inconclusive?

Crown prosecutor Rex Wild QC said DNA obtained from a blood stain on Ms Lees's t-shirt, Mr Falconio's former girlfriend, matched that of the accused Bradley John Murdoch.

But he never said the police had planted it and of course that has to be one of the leads to be followed up by the defense in the tourist industry show trial between Corporate Australia, Joanne Lees, and Bradley John Murdoch.

This means a lot for the tourist industry and the corporate giants have their hands dirty already. Ch/9 stalled the committal hearing early in the case so they could argue that court material should be heard in public and not in camera.

Stalled Falconio Committal to resume

Channel Nine have no rights whatsoever to delay the case of a person accused and in custody. Mr Bradley Murdoch should seek damages after the committal against Ch/9 to prevent further interference by corporate media giants who no doubt have a conflict of interest making news instead of reporting news and also having a corporate interest in tourism and $$$$$$$

Wild told the court that Murdoch's DNA was also identified on the gearstick of Mr Falconio's kombi van and on the hand ties that were allegedly used to bind Ms Lees on the night her boyfriend went missing.

Again no mention that the evidence could easily have been planted by police late in the investigation to help solve their case.

Forty-seven-year-old Bradley John Murdoch has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Peter Falconio and the assault and deprivation of liberty of Joanne Lees.

The court heard that Bradley Murdoch had a haircut and shave within a day of the British traveler's disappearance but most men have a shave everyday so how this is so suppose to be some type of evidence is bewildering and can only be seen as mind-set 'evidence' that men take personal care of themselves, surely. I mean I shave everyday.

Mr Wild said that a day after Mr Falconio went missing; Bradley Murdoch was driving through Central Australia to Broome. He said when Murdoch arrived in Broome; he had a shave and cut his hair.

But Joanne Lees who was stoned out of her brain on dope and who'd had a recent affair, had a better motive for the killing and could easily have committed the crime herself. So why wasn't she the main suspect?

Tall tale?

Mr Wild told the court that Mr Falconio and Ms Lees were traveling on a remote stretch of highway north of Alice Springs when the driver of a second car urged them to pull over.

He said Mr Falconio got out of the couple's kombi van to speak to the man. Mr Wild told the court that after hearing a loud bang, like a gun shot, Ms Lees was tied with cable ties by the man accused of murdering Mr Falconio.

She asked the man if he was going to rape her and if he had shot her boyfriend. The court heard Ms Lees was forced into the back of the man's van but managed to escape and run into bushes.

The prosecutor said she waited in the dark for about five hours until she felt safe enough to flag down a truck on the highway. The court has also heard evidence from Mr Falconio's brother and father.

The family members told the court they had not heard from Peter Falconio since the night he went missing more than four years ago.

But Joanne Lees was a more likely suspect even though she told the court she identified Bradley Murdoch as her attacker during last year's committal hearing and from a photo board.

Falconio beatup compromises NSW DNA laws
ABC 20 June 2002

The NSW government has used the recent media beatup surrounding DNA testing of 'a person of interest' in the Northern Territory Falconio murder investigation to neutralise protections contained in the NSW Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Act.

The Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Amendment (Corresponding Laws) Regulation 2002 takes advantage of a deliberate loophole in Section 95 of the Act which allows DNA legislation in other jurisdictions to be declared 'corresponding laws' - thereby permitting free flow of DNA database information between law enforcement agencies.

All Australian Federal, State and Territory legislation governing forensic DNA collection, analysis and use has been declared 'corresponding law' by NSW Attorney General Bob Debus - in spite of the fact that several of them contain none of the protections of the NSW Act.

Under the Northern Territory Police Administration Act people can be forced to submit to police DNA testing for summary offences such as 'failing to cease to loiter'. Once tested their DNA profile stays on the police database forever, where it is used in attempts to link the subject to unsolved offences. Volunteers and victims of crime are also liable to have their DNA used to implicate them in unsolved crime.

The Northern Territory is also the only Australian jurisdiction where police DNA testing is carried out in a laboratory which does not meet NATA accreditation standards. Its senior forensic scientist is Joy Kuhl, who first achieved notoriety for her part in the wrongful conviction of Lindy Chamberlain.

In NSW, by contrast, only those suspected or convicted of serious offences can be forced to provide DNA. If they are found innocent, have their convictions overturned or are not charged within a year their profiles and samples must be 'destroyed' (i.e. deidentified).

However the declaration of the new regulations now means that NSW police can 'launder' tainted DNA evidence through their NT colleagues.

Even when NSW police are required by law to 'destroy' a DNA profile they can rest easy in the knowledge that a shared copy remains on the NT police database and will shortly be 'shared' back to NSW. Those not liable for forced DNA testing under NSW laws might be picked up while visiting another state and forcibly tested for 'abusive language' or 'failing to cease to loiter', with results of the test relayed back to the NSW database.

The NSW government has taken advantage of the arrest of 29 year old Michael Sorrell for the stabbing murder of Michael Furlong in Smithfield on June 3 to create an artificial atmosphere of urgency and stifle debate of the new regulations.

Sorrell is described as a 'person of interest' in the shooting and presumed murder of Peter Falconio near Alice Springs in July last year, in spite of the fact that he does not match the description of eye-witness, Joanna Lees.

NSW police received DNA recovered from the crime scene in August last year and could have compared it with Sorrell's at any time without needing to alter NSW regulations (there are no restrictions in either NSW or the NT on the use of crime scene DNA).

According to a report in the [Un] Australian, Mr Sorrell has been forcibly DNA tested over 50 times since he was picked up. He is believed to have been in Queensland when Falconio was killed but a 'misinterpreted telephone conversation between territory and NSW police' resulted in him being seen as a potential suspect.

Michael Sorrell was finally cleared of involvement in the murder of Peter Falconio on June 15, when NT police announced no match between his DNA and the murder scene. But NSW citizens have now permanently lost the few protections they previously enjoyed under the Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Act.

By Amanda Mortein 18 October 05

Related:

Murdoch: Ambushed by Prosecution
AUSTRALIA: NT-Through the smell of an oily rag - A FORENSIC expert alledgedly has produced vital evidence ahead of the Peter Falconio murder trial linking his alleged killer to the camper van driven by the dead man and his girlfriend, Joanne Lees?

Day set aside for Falconio forensic evidence
More than a day has been set aside in the case of the man accused of murdering British backpacker Peter Falconio to hear evidence from a Northern Territory forensic scientist. Yesterday the Darwin Magistrates Court heard from mechanics and friends of the defendant Bradley John Murdoch.

Mr Bradley Murdoch to go on trial next year!
The alleged man is not the alleged Falconio killer in my book. He's alleged to have committed a crime but the Faloconio mystery remains a secret to be unlocked by time itself and more interestingly may never be unlocked at all.

Falconio magistrate closes court
THE hearing into the murder of British tourist Peter Falconio has been closed to the public. Magistrate Alasdair McGregor has closed the court for part of the testimony of Mr Falconio's girlfriend Joanne Lees.

Ch/9 News? Or Ch/9's Department of Public Prosecutions?
Bradley Murdoch committal, lawyer calls for fair hearing
The lawyer of the man accused of murdering British backpacker Peter Falconio has spoken to the media in Darwin.

Peter Beattie nominated as Australian of the year: Howard
Bradley Murdoch the man alleged to have murdered English tourist Peter Falconio who has been acquitted of rape and abduction charges in the South Australian District Court.

Tourist dollar drives set-up for crime
The man alleged to have murdered English tourist Peter Falconio has been acquitted of rape and abduction charges in the South Australian District Court. Bradley John Murdoch, 45, was charged with two counts of rape, two counts of false imprisonment and two counts of indecent assault after an alleged incident in South Australia's Riverland in August last year.

Supreme Court rejects Nine appeal
CHANNEL Nine lost a Supreme Court appeal today to have a suppression order on details of the case of missing backpacker Peter Falconio lifted. The Full Bench of the NT Supreme Court today ruled Magistrate Alasdair McGregor had the power to make the order banning from publication some details of the case.

Falconio magistrate closes court
THE hearing into the murder of British tourist Peter Falconio has been closed to the public. Magistrate Alasdair McGregor has closed the court for part of the testimony of Mr Falconio's girlfriend Joanne Lees.

Innocent until proven guilty? Not in Australia's outback!
There is no way that Bradley John Murdoch can get a fair trial in the Northern Territory. The entire jury pool is already contaminated, the general public have accepted the verdict of the Northern Territory News and the NT Police State has turned on the cone of silence. Maybe some of the reporters might want to ask Director of Public Prosecutions Rex Wilde QC just how he is going to secure a conviction when a body has not been found. Surely the NT bureaucracy learnt from the Lindy Chamberlain case that it is not a good idea to jail someone for murder when you haven't got a body. Maybe they have the same people working on the case. The NT Police forensic team certainly do.

Taken "A Dingo Took My Baby!"
They were the words that Lindy Chamberlain had screamed out into the blackness of the cold night in a camping ground close to Ayers Rock, Central Australia, on the night of August 17, when she discovered that her nearly ten-week-old baby, Azaria had been taken by a dingo.

Man Says He Shot Dingo That Snatched Baby SYDNEY, Australia (July 5) - A distraught mother's scream 24 years ago that a dingo snatched her baby from a camp site near Ayers Rock in the Australian Outback ignited one of Australia's most enduring mysteries. An elderly man's claim that he retrieved the infant's bloodied body from the jaws of the wild dog has revived the case and - if true - could finally lead to the discovery of Azaria Chamberlain's body.

Australia to see the light on tourism
A total of $120 million has been earmarked for the campaign's international marketing, which tops up the Australian Tourist Commission's annual budget of $90 million. The inbound and domestic tourism industry contributes $70 billion to the economy and employs 500,000.

Ten reports $76.9 million profit
The Ten television network has reported a full-year profit of $76.9 million. Even if it were down by half on the previous year they're still greedy self-interested people who care little about the real damage done, not just in Australia but the world. That profit is obviously on top of wages and expenses yet they're still greedy enough to turn the news upside down to suit the Howard government's investment in advertising.

DNA Links:

The ABC for good or evil?
He had a suspect that he wanted to find guilty based on the chances of a spouse killing a spouse which were greater in anycase, at least more likely than that of a stranger.

First Grabs To Control Our DNA
A small company in Australia has been subjected to gross denials of rights after DNA database technology was stolen from it's company. This one year saga has spawned them to form a new approach to projects of importance to all people.

Worries over DNA and racial profiling
UK: Black men are four times more likely than White men to be on the national DNA database and there is growing concern about racial profiling in criminal investigations.

Lab's Errors Force Review of 150 Virginia DNA Cases
US: WASHINGTON, - A sharply critical independent audit found that Virginia's nationally recognized central crime laboratory had botched DNA tests in a leading capital murder case. The findings prompted Gov. Mark Warner to order a review of the lab's handling of testing in 150 other cases as well.

Witch-hunt targets scientists
QLD: SCIENTISTS at the John Tonge Centre are being threatened with jail in the wake of a government hunt for the source of leaks highlighting serious problems in the forensic laboratories.

Fresh swipe at DNA labs
Scientist Kris Bentley, whose departure yesterday follows that of forensic biologist Deanna Belzer after concerns about "inaccurate" DNA results and unvalidated equipment, issued a scathing resignation letter leaked to The Courier-Mail.

DNA leads 'CSI' cold-case squad to first arrest?
Frozen case? I don't really know what to say about them until they come up with their case. They say it involves DNA evidence but that's the only stuff we know.

Criminal's DNA filed under relative's name
The New South Wales Opposition is calling for an investigation into claims that police have entered DNA data for serious offenders under incorrect names.

DNA fingerprinting 'no longer foolproof'...
The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.

THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT!
PROFESSOR BARRY BOETTCHER: Now, there should be a law enacted within Queensland so that when cases come up like this they can be brought to attention and if an appropriate authority such as a judge of your Supreme Court considers that it merits further inquiry, an inquiry be ordered.

'Rape' officer clears his name
UK: A former policeman has been cleared of rape after protesting his innocence for 15 years. Judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that Brian Kelly, 47, had suffered a miscarriage of justice over crucial DNA evidence.

New unit investigates unsolved deaths?
A new police unit has been established to investigate more than 360 unsolved deaths in New South Wales, with many of the deaths dating back more than 30 years.

Prisoner's bid for review denied
Prisoner Roger Cheney has lost a Supreme Court action to have a judicial review of his 1993 convictions an 30-year jail sentence. Justice Shaw said he was concerned about the prisoner's claim that DNA evidence held by the police could prove his innocence. Although Cheney had requested the results of the DNA tests, he had been denied access to the forensic analysis.

QLD Prisoners DNA Bid THE curious case of Queensland's "cat lady" murder is set to test the state's legal authorities again, with the man convicted of the killing asking the Attorney-General to take the unprecedented step of releasing blood samples for DNA retesting.

Database clears up crimes?
NSW Police Minister John Watkins said at the launch of a Sydney conference of international forensic experts meeting to mark 100 years of fingerprinting in NSW. He said the collection of DNA from prisoners and suspects in NSW during the past two years had led to more than 5,400 matches on the forensic database.

A Question of Innocence
Katrina Bolton: The promise of DNA freeing the innocent as well as convicting the guilty has been repeated by politicians across Australia, usually while DNA laws are being expanded. The promise was made as a national DNA database, ‘Crimtrac’ was created, and it was made as NSW introduced legislation giving unprecedented powers to take DNA samples from prisoners, by force if necessary.

Weak Carr Government suspends Innocence Panel
It's a callous disregard for justice! The panel takes applications from convicted prisoners for DNA evidence to be analysed a move that may help in a future court appeal.

JUST BEAT IT! Govt lauds crime-solving technology?
The New South Wales Government says advances in crime solving technology are helping the progress of hundreds of police investigations.

DNA testing causes debate in murder case
The use of voluntary DNA testing in the investigation of a murder case in New South Wales has been applauded by victim support groups who are ill informed about the process said Justice Action's spokesperson Gregory Kable.

Abolition of double jeopardy law a political stunt: NSW Opp
Why draconian laws? What about the re-trial by media that goes along with it? Twice shy?

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The NSW government has finally appointed somebody (Justice John Nader) to head up its Innocence Panel and has produced leaflets and forms for people convicted of serious crimes (eg murder) to apply for DNA testing if they believe it may help prove their innocence. You can get the info by phoning 1300 881 717 or writing to the panel at GPO Box 45 Sydney NSW 2001.

Is the Westminster System flawed?
Most people would say Lady Di got the boot and NSW has so much trouble getting the Innocence Panel moving. I said hey, what's going on!

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank. The Herald reported 25 Nov 02 "a DNA saliva swab led to the charging of a former prisoner with the bashing murder of a woman. Police had been unable to find any witnesses or suspects following the murder in Sydney's inner city two years ago. Detectives had admitted they faced a tough job finding the killer."

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

DNA yours or mine?
Now they have isolated two genes that they say tells you if you're more likely to be depressed. What does that mean? It could mean that you should stay in jail because you are more likely than not to continue your offending behaviour according to a Department of Corrective Services Forensic Psychiatrist.

DNA = Do Not Assume - DNA Controversies!
The national DNA database of all known offenders proposed by Prime Minister Tony Blair could mean that innocent people will be accused of crimes they did not commit.

DNA Evidence of Bipartisanship
Last week the U.S. Congress passed the Justice for All Act, which includes provisions of the Innocence Protection Act. As of this posting, the legislation has not yet been signed by President Bush. Attached is an analysis of the legislation prepared by the Justice Project.

First Grabs To Control Our DNA

A small company in Australia has been subjected to gross denials of rights after DNA database technology was stolen from it's company. This one year saga has spawned them to form a new approach to projects of importance to all people.

You would not think that the fight for the control of our DNA would occur in a country like Australia. Most people associate it with clean beaches and kangaroos, not corruption and denial of rights. My name is George Iliades.

I was born and raised in Australia and I take great pride in being Australian. I am the CEO of small software development company, Psylon Pty Ltd. One of our most important software development projects is a sophisticated National DNA Database, codenamed: Seraphim (six winged angel).

For the past twelve months we have been waging a war of survival and to get any form of justice for the theft of our companies Intellectual Property. Our reason for fighting this injustice is that we do not want DNA technology to get into the hands of the wrong people.

The fight continues now, because if we allow people such as this to gain control, future generations will end up in a society where people are valued and controlled by their DNA profile. Eventually very few people may control the entire population.

Our twelve month ordeal had more twists and turns than a movie. In isolation all the things that happened to us represent an amazing chain of events and devious methods designed to take down a company.

The dark side of this story is that this form of treatment imposed upon people is highly destructive and far more common than we are led to believe. The effect on our team was evident.

We had to contend with no legal justice from our Government [in fact no help at all].

We were left to run a company that had become a quarter in size, in under three weeks. This stress was compounded by the need to gather evidence so we could protect our company and ourselves from further assault.

A Global Problem It is easy to point the finger at one group, or person, or to blame the Government, but what I have witnessed has made me see that this is a symptom of a wider problem. I saw the lengths that people will go to for money, power and control. None of us can claim to be perfect but we need to claim back the right to use our basic moral compass.

Unfortunately when you are dealing with DNA and the future of global freedom, you cannot allow factors of moral weakness to enter the equation. Most people are not aware of the upcoming problems with vast DNA databases, and those it is meant to serve are not capable of defending their personal freedoms.

The other problem is a matter of technological imposition. The technologically advanced countries are going into isolated communities to take DNA samples and patent their codes. This, coupled with the technology gap could lead to the exclusion of major parts of the global population in the decision making process of DNA.

We Reject Your Reality In this world we are made to feel weak and powerless. All the gifts that we are given as free and unique spirits are boiled down to dollars and cents. We are fighting an endless, self-feeding cycle of greed, power and control. How can this happen? How can a global population be taken hostage by broken ideals? Fear! Fear makes us bow down to evil people and group pressure; it makes us do things that we know are wrong. Fear is what drives people to find the easy escape and sell each other out. What they do not realise in this case is that they are not just selling out an Australian company they are selling out themselves and future generations.

No amount of money can cover the price that we will all pay for selling out the control of our DNA information. We will respond to this world-wide problem with the mightiest power of all. Love! We will launch the first global DNA project based on a new business model on midnight Saturday 2nd July 2005.

The Seraphim project will be a global project for the people, by the people to protect our DNA and free our global spirit.

To be part of this project all you will need to do is give your heart.

What You Can Do Now Through the last twelve months of this ordeal we have asked for some type of formal investigation into these events.

To our amazement no government department has responded to our claims, rather we have been ignored and finally isolated.

If you are concerned about this issue we ask that you send a respectful email or contact the Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard to voice your concerns:

The Psylon team will set up a new website for the Seraphim project.

To find out when it will be available, keep an eye on our web site at Psylon.

Also send our team an email to encourage us with this struggle to, seraphim@psylon.com

By George Iliades June 30 05
Psylon

Onwards and upwards!!: Loud and clear comrade! The stars are my brothers and sisters loud and clear comrade! The stars are my brothers and sisters and the heart is mercy! and the heart is mercy! Mercy for them all..........Mercy for them all.......... Regards,

All the chickens in the hen house. All the chickens in the hen house.

Related:

Worries over DNA and racial profiling
UK: Black men are four times more likely than White men to be on the national DNA database and there is growing concern about racial profiling in criminal investigations.

Lab's Errors Force Review of 150 Virginia DNA Cases
US: WASHINGTON, - A sharply critical independent audit found that Virginia's nationally recognized central crime laboratory had botched DNA tests in a leading capital murder case. The findings prompted Gov. Mark Warner to order a review of the lab's handling of testing in 150 other cases as well.

Witch-hunt targets scientists
QLD: SCIENTISTS at the John Tonge Centre are being threatened with jail in the wake of a government hunt for the source of leaks highlighting serious problems in the forensic laboratories.

Fresh swipe at DNA labs
Scientist Kris Bentley, whose departure yesterday follows that of forensic biologist Deanna Belzer after concerns about "inaccurate" DNA results and unvalidated equipment, issued a scathing resignation letter leaked to The Courier-Mail.

DNA leads 'CSI' cold-case squad to first arrest?
Frozen case? I don't really know what to say about them until they come up with their case. They say it involves DNA evidence but that's the only stuff we know.

Criminal's DNA filed under relative's name
The New South Wales Opposition is calling for an investigation into claims that police have entered DNA data for serious offenders under incorrect names.

DNA fingerprinting 'no longer foolproof'...
The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.

THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT!
PROFESSOR BARRY BOETTCHER: Now, there should be a law enacted within Queensland so that when cases come up like this they can be brought to attention and if an appropriate authority such as a judge of your Supreme Court considers that it merits further inquiry, an inquiry be ordered.

'Rape' officer clears his name
UK: A former policeman has been cleared of rape after protesting his innocence for 15 years. Judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that Brian Kelly, 47, had suffered a miscarriage of justice over crucial DNA evidence.

New unit investigates unsolved deaths?
A new police unit has been established to investigate more than 360 unsolved deaths in New South Wales, with many of the deaths dating back more than 30 years.

Prisoner's bid for review denied
Prisoner Roger Cheney has lost a Supreme Court action to have a judicial review of his 1993 convictions an 30-year jail sentence. Justice Shaw said he was concerned about the prisoner's claim that DNA evidence held by the police could prove his innocence. Although Cheney had requested the results of the DNA tests, he had been denied access to the forensic analysis.

QLD Prisoners DNA Bid THE curious case of Queensland's "cat lady" murder is set to test the state's legal authorities again, with the man convicted of the killing asking the Attorney-General to take the unprecedented step of releasing blood samples for DNA retesting.

Database clears up crimes?
NSW Police Minister John Watkins said at the launch of a Sydney conference of international forensic experts meeting to mark 100 years of fingerprinting in NSW. He said the collection of DNA from prisoners and suspects in NSW during the past two years had led to more than 5,400 matches on the forensic database.

A Question of Innocence
Katrina Bolton: The promise of DNA freeing the innocent as well as convicting the guilty has been repeated by politicians across Australia, usually while DNA laws are being expanded. The promise was made as a national DNA database, ‘Crimtrac’ was created, and it was made as NSW introduced legislation giving unprecedented powers to take DNA samples from prisoners, by force if necessary.

Weak Carr Government suspends Innocence Panel
It's a callous disregard for justice! The panel takes applications from convicted prisoners for DNA evidence to be analysed a move that may help in a future court appeal.

JUST BEAT IT! Govt lauds crime-solving technology?
The New South Wales Government says advances in crime solving technology are helping the progress of hundreds of police investigations.

DNA testing causes debate in murder case
The use of voluntary DNA testing in the investigation of a murder case in New South Wales has been applauded by victim support groups who are ill informed about the process said Justice Action's spokesperson Gregory Kable.

Abolition of double jeopardy law a political stunt: NSW Opp
Why draconian laws? What about the re-trial by media that goes along with it? Twice shy?

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The NSW government has finally appointed somebody (Justice John Nader) to head up its Innocence Panel and has produced leaflets and forms for people convicted of serious crimes (eg murder) to apply for DNA testing if they believe it may help prove their innocence. You can get the info by phoning 1300 881 717 or writing to the panel at GPO Box 45 Sydney NSW 2001.

Is the Westminster System flawed?
Most people would say Lady Di got the boot and NSW has so much trouble getting the Innocence Panel moving. I said hey, what's going on!

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank. The Herald reported 25 Nov 02 "a DNA saliva swab led to the charging of a former prisoner with the bashing murder of a woman. Police had been unable to find any witnesses or suspects following the murder in Sydney's inner city two years ago. Detectives had admitted they faced a tough job finding the killer."

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

DNA yours or mine?
Now they have isolated two genes that they say tells you if you're more likely to be depressed. What does that mean? It could mean that you should stay in jail because you are more likely than not to continue your offending behaviour according to a Department of Corrective Services Forensic Psychiatrist.

DNA = Do Not Assume - DNA Controversies!
The national DNA database of all known offenders proposed by Prime Minister Tony Blair could mean that innocent people will be accused of crimes they did not commit.

DNA Evidence of Bipartisanship
Last week the U.S. Congress passed the Justice for All Act, which includes provisions of the Innocence Protection Act. As of this posting, the legislation has not yet been signed by President Bush. Attached is an analysis of the legislation prepared by the Justice Project.

Here come de Judge - Time to Leave [266]
There have always been examples of rulings and interpretations that have supported the saying "The law is an ass". This is increasingly the case, because even the best intentioned judges are now facing an avalanche of new technologies and social change. But, it is no good making excuses for the judiciary and continuing to accept their strange interpretations. We must recognise that not only judges but the whole legal system will struggle more and more. In the end the whole system will become a farce. This is the way empires end.

2nd Renaissance -15 The Rabbits And The Wolves [180]
Historically, there have been periods when legal distinctions between animals and humans have been blurred. For instance, in medieval Europe, in the 14th and 15th centuries, numerous trials and executions of animals occurred. One source identifies 34 recorded instances of pigs having been tried and cruelly put to death. Besides pigs; rats, chickens, goats, and bees were similarly tried. Some of the pigs were fully dressed in human clothes at the time they were, inevitably, found guilty. In one case a vicar excommunicated a flock of sparrows that infested his church. All this happened despite the theological stance that animals had no soul, and no morals or conscience. They could not really be guilty of transgressing the Rule of Law.

Worries over DNA and racial profiling

UK: Black men are four times more likely than White men to be on the national DNA database and there is growing concern about racial profiling in criminal investigations.

The police national DNA database (NDNAD), launched in 1995, now contains almost three million profiles. The prospect of everyone providing a DNA profile for the database is unlikely because of concerns put forward by civil liberties groups about such a system undermining the presumption of innocence.

However, recent legislation has made it simpler for the police to input DNA profiles to the database and it is now lawful to retain DNA profiles for the NDNAD from those arrested, even when a person has neither been charged nor convicted.

The over-representation of Black and Minority Ethnic men on the database, which Professor Alec Jeffreys, inventor of the DNA fingerprinting technique, has recently described in the New Scientist as 'highly discriminatory', is increasingly likely to spill over into racialised policing. Currently, 32% of all Black males within the UK are on the database, compared to only 8% of white males. While DNA forensic evidence is often presented as having near-perfect accuracy, in fact there is potential for error and mismatch.

It is common practice for forensic science laboratories to retain samples, although the technology, at present, is limited to a small non-coding portion of the DNA, which does not unveil any information besides the person's identity.

The Forensic Science Service (FSS) claims that it keeps samples to ensure a mistake has not been made in the database. Yet, a researcher at the NDNAD has already confirmed that any retained samples may be subject to full DNA analysis in the future.

This would reveal a person's ethnicity and other personal characteristics. The database is already being used for research projects authorised by the Home Office and the NDNAD; one study is extracting statistical information on ethnicity. The dangers lie not only in using the database as a policing tool but also in its use as a wider ethnicity-profiling tool.

Operation Minstead

Last year, an operation in South London was criticised for its racial bias. According to allegations made to The Voice by Nathaniel Braithwaite, a Black policeman involved in 'Operation Minstead', officers had been ordered by their superiors to stop Black men in South London and ask them to provide DNA samples.

Braithwaite was instructed to stop light-skinned Black men, between the ages of 25 to 40, between 5 foot 8 inches and 6 foot one inch. He was told to ask them to provide a DNA sample to assist with an investigation into a spate of burglaries. This action was taken as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into a series of rapes across south London thought to have all been perpetrated by a Black man, who had come to be nicknamed 'the nightstalker'.

According to Braithwaite, if people objected to giving a voluntary DNA sample, they were to be arrested on suspicion of rape; a compulsory DNA swab could then be taken at the police station. Their DNA would be stored on the national database indefinitely along with those who gave 'voluntary' samples.

An article in the Metropolitan Police's own newspaper, The Job, in December 2003, advised all police officers to support Operation Minstead by taking DNA swabs from even those people arrested who 'may not fit the profile' given in the description of the perpetrator but who still 'give you concern'.

Braithwaite objected to the nature of the DNA swabbing operation and this led to meetings with his superiors. He was subsequently asked to provide a DNA sample himself. After his initial refusal, he consulted the Police Federation, which backed his objection to provide a sample, on the grounds of it being a racially discriminatory policy. However, after discussions with colleagues, Nathaniel Braithwaite reneged and did provide a sample.

In April 2004, investigators decided that all Black officers in the Metropolitan Police should submit DNA samples. Having to provide yet another DNA sample prompted Braithwaite's resignation from the Met. (He is awaiting a tribunal hearing on his case of unfair dismissal and racial discrimination.)

The Braithwaite case drew attention to the discriminatory potential in database creation. But it also revealed the limitations of such large DNA trawls. For Operation Minstead had already provided officers with enough detail about the suspect's physical profile and family origins through ancestral DNA. Yet, after twelve years, no suspect had been discovered.

The fear for individuals, particularly those from Black and Minority Ethnic groups is not just the action of DNA profiling for specific cases, but the misuse of this information when it has been retained. By inputting as many Black and Minority Ethnic people onto the system as possible, the expanding, but unrepresentative, database is poised to form the basis for further ethnicity studies, and remains as a permanent tool for racial profiling.

By Fizza Qureshi posted 23 May 05

Image: The Inconvenient Science of Racial Profiling

What if there were a DNA sample from a crime scene, but no match in any existing database.

DNAPrint: a DNA test that could narrow the range of suspects in a crime by race, height, gender, and eye color

Related:

Lab's Errors Force Review of 150 Virginia DNA Cases
US: WASHINGTON, - A sharply critical independent audit found that Virginia's nationally recognized central crime laboratory had botched DNA tests in a leading capital murder case. The findings prompted Gov. Mark Warner to order a review of the lab's handling of testing in 150 other cases as well.

Witch-hunt targets scientists
QLD: SCIENTISTS at the John Tonge Centre are being threatened with jail in the wake of a government hunt for the source of leaks highlighting serious problems in the forensic laboratories.

Fresh swipe at DNA labs
Scientist Kris Bentley, whose departure yesterday follows that of forensic biologist Deanna Belzer after concerns about "inaccurate" DNA results and unvalidated equipment, issued a scathing resignation letter leaked to The Courier-Mail.

DNA leads 'CSI' cold-case squad to first arrest?
Frozen case? I don't really know what to say about them until they come up with their case. They say it involves DNA evidence but that's the only stuff we know.

Criminal's DNA filed under relative's name
The New South Wales Opposition is calling for an investigation into claims that police have entered DNA data for serious offenders under incorrect names.

DNA fingerprinting 'no longer foolproof'...
The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.

THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT!
PROFESSOR BARRY BOETTCHER: Now, there should be a law enacted within Queensland so that when cases come up like this they can be brought to attention and if an appropriate authority such as a judge of your Supreme Court considers that it merits further inquiry, an inquiry be ordered.

'Rape' officer clears his name
UK: A former policeman has been cleared of rape after protesting his innocence for 15 years. Judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that Brian Kelly, 47, had suffered a miscarriage of justice over crucial DNA evidence.

New unit investigates unsolved deaths?
A new police unit has been established to investigate more than 360 unsolved deaths in New South Wales, with many of the deaths dating back more than 30 years.

Prisoner's bid for review denied
Prisoner Roger Cheney has lost a Supreme Court action to have a judicial review of his 1993 convictions an 30-year jail sentence. Justice Shaw said he was concerned about the prisoner's claim that DNA evidence held by the police could prove his innocence. Although Cheney had requested the results of the DNA tests, he had been denied access to the forensic analysis.

QLD Prisoners DNA Bid THE curious case of Queensland's "cat lady" murder is set to test the state's legal authorities again, with the man convicted of the killing asking the Attorney-General to take the unprecedented step of releasing blood samples for DNA retesting.

Database clears up crimes?
NSW Police Minister John Watkins said at the launch of a Sydney conference of international forensic experts meeting to mark 100 years of fingerprinting in NSW. He said the collection of DNA from prisoners and suspects in NSW during the past two years had led to more than 5,400 matches on the forensic database.

A Question of Innocence
Katrina Bolton: The promise of DNA freeing the innocent as well as convicting the guilty has been repeated by politicians across Australia, usually while DNA laws are being expanded. The promise was made as a national DNA database, ‘Crimtrac’ was created, and it was made as NSW introduced legislation giving unprecedented powers to take DNA samples from prisoners, by force if necessary.

Weak Carr Government suspends Innocence Panel
It's a callous disregard for justice! The panel takes applications from convicted prisoners for DNA evidence to be analysed a move that may help in a future court appeal.

JUST BEAT IT! Govt lauds crime-solving technology?
The New South Wales Government says advances in crime solving technology are helping the progress of hundreds of police investigations.

DNA testing causes debate in murder case
The use of voluntary DNA testing in the investigation of a murder case in New South Wales has been applauded by victim support groups who are ill informed about the process said Justice Action's spokesperson Gregory Kable.

Abolition of double jeopardy law a political stunt: NSW Opp
Why draconian laws? What about the re-trial by media that goes along with it? Twice shy?

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The NSW government has finally appointed somebody (Justice John Nader) to head up its Innocence Panel and has produced leaflets and forms for people convicted of serious crimes (eg murder) to apply for DNA testing if they believe it may help prove their innocence. You can get the info by phoning 1300 881 717 or writing to the panel at GPO Box 45 Sydney NSW 2001.

Is the Westminster System flawed?
Most people would say Lady Di got the boot and NSW has so much trouble getting the Innocence Panel moving. I said hey, what's going on!

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank. The Herald reported 25 Nov 02 "a DNA saliva swab led to the charging of a former prisoner with the bashing murder of a woman. Police had been unable to find any witnesses or suspects following the murder in Sydney's inner city two years ago. Detectives had admitted they faced a tough job finding the killer."

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

DNA yours or mine?
Now they have isolated two genes that they say tells you if you're more likely to be depressed. What does that mean? It could mean that you should stay in jail because you are more likely than not to continue your offending behaviour according to a Department of Corrective Services Forensic Psychiatrist.

DNA = Do Not Assume - DNA Controversies!
The national DNA database of all known offenders proposed by Prime Minister Tony Blair could mean that innocent people will be accused of crimes they did not commit.

DNA Evidence of Bipartisanship
Last week the U.S. Congress passed the Justice for All Act, which includes provisions of the Innocence Protection Act. As of this posting, the legislation has not yet been signed by President Bush. Attached is an analysis of the legislation prepared by the Justice Project.

DNA - A Shadow of Doubt
One case points to misinterpretation of evidence that helped put a man behind bars. The other shows just how easy it is to plant falsely incriminating DNA evidence. As our forensic techniques become ever more sensitive, so the possibility of abuse continues to grow.

Here come de Judge - Time to Leave [266]
There have always been examples of rulings and interpretations that have supported the saying "The law is an ass". This is increasingly the case, because even the best intentioned judges are now facing an avalanche of new technologies and social change. But, it is no good making excuses for the judiciary and continuing to accept their strange interpretations. We must recognise that not only judges but the whole legal system will struggle more and more. In the end the whole system will become a farce. This is the way empires end.

2nd Renaissance -15 The Rabbits And The Wolves [180]
Historically, there have been periods when legal distinctions between animals and humans have been blurred. For instance, in medieval Europe, in the 14th and 15th centuries, numerous trials and executions of animals occurred. One source identifies 34 recorded instances of pigs having been tried and cruelly put to death. Besides pigs; rats, chickens, goats, and bees were similarly tried. Some of the pigs were fully dressed in human clothes at the time they were, inevitably, found guilty. In one case a vicar excommunicated a flock of sparrows that infested his church. All this happened despite the theological stance that animals had no soul, and no morals or conscience. They could not really be guilty of transgressing the Rule of Law.

Safeguards demanded for DNA database

Privacy safeguards are required to combat the intrusive effects of the police DNA database, it has been claimed.

GeneWatch UK launched a report which said the National DNA Database posed an increasing threat to privacy.

Spokeswoman Dr Helen Wallace said: "Controls on the database must be tightened to prevent a Big Brother state.

"Within living memory, both fascist and communist governments in Europe have used personal records as a means of oppressing different populations.

"There are important changes that can be made to safeguard privacy and rights without compromising the use of DNA in fighting crime."

The group noted that the database creates a permanent "list of suspects", including anyone arrested for a recordable offence, even if they are never charged.

It "increases the potential for discrimination in the criminal justice system," said the report, which called for the creation of an independent and accountable governing body for the database.

Individuals' DNA samples should also be destroyed once an investigation was complete, it added.

The group opposed the idea of expanding the database to include the whole population because of the "potential to create a future police state".

By Just Us posted 17 January 05

Related:

DNA leads 'CSI' cold-case squad to first arrest?
Frozen case? I don't really know what to say about them until they come up with their case. They say it involves DNA evidence but that's the only stuff we know.

Senior judge calls for DNA database
UK: A senior appeal court judge noted as an upholder of civil liberties called for a national DNA database recording everyone living in or entering the country.

Criminal's DNA filed under relative's name
The New South Wales Opposition is calling for an investigation into claims that police have entered DNA data for serious offenders under incorrect names.

DNA fingerprinting 'no longer foolproof'...
The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.

THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT!
PROFESSOR BARRY BOETTCHER: Now, there should be a law enacted within Queensland so that when cases come up like this they can be brought to attention and if an appropriate authority such as a judge of your Supreme Court considers that it merits further inquiry, an inquiry be ordered.

'Rape' officer clears his name
UK: A former policeman has been cleared of rape after protesting his innocence for 15 years. Judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh ruled that Brian Kelly, 47, had suffered a miscarriage of justice over crucial DNA evidence.

New unit investigates unsolved deaths?
A new police unit has been established to investigate more than 360 unsolved deaths in New South Wales, with many of the deaths dating back more than 30 years.

Prisoner's bid for review denied
Prisoner Roger Cheney has lost a Supreme Court action to have a judicial review of his 1993 convictions an 30-year jail sentence. Justice Shaw said he was concerned about the prisoner's claim that DNA evidence held by the police could prove his innocence. Although Cheney had requested the results of the DNA tests, he had been denied access to the forensic analysis.

QLD Prisoners DNA Bid THE curious case of Queensland's "cat lady" murder is set to test the state's legal authorities again, with the man convicted of the killing asking the Attorney-General to take the unprecedented step of releasing blood samples for DNA retesting.

Database clears up crimes?
NSW Police Minister John Watkins said at the launch of a Sydney conference of international forensic experts meeting to mark 100 years of fingerprinting in NSW. He said the collection of DNA from prisoners and suspects in NSW during the past two years had led to more than 5,400 matches on the forensic database.

A Question of Innocence
Katrina Bolton: The promise of DNA freeing the innocent as well as convicting the guilty has been repeated by politicians across Australia, usually while DNA laws are being expanded. The promise was made as a national DNA database, ‘Crimtrac’ was created, and it was made as NSW introduced legislation giving unprecedented powers to take DNA samples from prisoners, by force if necessary.

Weak Carr Government suspends Innocence Panel
It's a callous disregard for justice! The panel takes applications from convicted prisoners for DNA evidence to be analysed a move that may help in a future court appeal.

JUST BEAT IT! Govt lauds crime-solving technology?
The New South Wales Government says advances in crime solving technology are helping the progress of hundreds of police investigations.

DNA testing causes debate in murder case
The use of voluntary DNA testing in the investigation of a murder case in New South Wales has been applauded by victim support groups who are ill informed about the process said Justice Action's spokesperson Gregory Kable.

Abolition of double jeopardy law a political stunt: NSW Opp
Why draconian laws? What about the re-trial by media that goes along with it? Twice shy?

ARE YOU INNOCENT?
The NSW government has finally appointed somebody (Justice John Nader) to head up its Innocence Panel and has produced leaflets and forms for people convicted of serious crimes (eg murder) to apply for DNA testing if they believe it may help prove their innocence. You can get the info by phoning 1300 881 717 or writing to the panel at GPO Box 45 Sydney NSW 2001.

Is the Westminster System flawed?
Most people would say Lady Di got the boot and NSW has so much trouble getting the Innocence Panel moving. I said hey, what's going on!

Murder charge first for DNA data bank link, but not the same as solving the murder Mass DNA testing of prisoners has led to the first NSW case of a person being charged with a previously unsolved murder as a result of a controversial gene-matching data bank. The Herald reported 25 Nov 02 "a DNA saliva swab led to the charging of a former prisoner with the bashing murder of a woman. Police had been unable to find any witnesses or suspects following the murder in Sydney's inner city two years ago. Detectives had admitted they faced a tough job finding the killer."

Prisoners can prove innocence for $20
Les Kennedy Daily Telegraph reported today that" Prisoners who believe that DNA will prove they were wrongly convicted will have the chance to prove their innocence for a mere $20 administration fee. The move comes 20 months after NSW inmates were asked to provide DNA for comparison with a databank of DNA from unsolved crime scenes for possible convictions.

DNA yours or mine?
Now they have isolated two genes that they say tells you if you're more likely to be depressed. What does that mean? It could mean that you should stay in jail because you are more likely than not to continue your offending behaviour according to a Department of Corrective Services Forensic Psychiatrist.

DNA = Do Not Assume - DNA Controversies!
The national DNA database of all known offenders proposed by Prime Minister Tony Blair could mean that innocent people will be accused of crimes they did not commit.

DNA Evidence of Bipartisanship
Last week the U.S. Congress passed the Justice for All Act, which includes provisions of the Innocence Protection Act. As of this posting, the legislation has not yet been signed by President Bush. Attached is an analysis of the legislation prepared by the Justice Project.

Here come de Judge - Time to Leave [266]
There have always been examples of rulings and interpretations that have supported the saying "The law is an ass". This is increasingly the case, because even the best intentioned judges are now facing an avalanche of new technologies and social change. But, it is no good making excuses for the judiciary and continuing to accept their strange interpretations. We must recognise that not only judges but the whole legal system will struggle more and more. In the end the whole system will become a farce. This is the way empires end.

2nd Renaissance -15 The Rabbits And The Wolves [180]
Historically, there have been periods when legal distinctions between animals and humans have been blurred. For instance, in medieval Europe, in the 14th and 15th centuries, numerous trials and executions of animals occurred. One source identifies 34 recorded instances of pigs having been tried and cruelly put to death. Besides pigs; rats, chickens, goats, and bees were similarly tried. Some of the pigs were fully dressed in human clothes at the time they were, inevitably, found guilty. In one case a vicar excommunicated a flock of sparrows that infested his church. All this happened despite the theological stance that animals had no soul, and no morals or conscience. They could not really be guilty of transgressing the Rule of Law.