DNA technology is evolving rapidly and many states are considering whether to expand DNA databases or invest in DNA casework investigations. In order to inform the discussion of these issues, NIJ commissioned an independent study to ascertain the size of and reasons for the nation's backlog of DNA evidence. The resulting report included the list of cases presented here. This list of cases is not exhaustive, does not identify the perpetrator or victim, and is not a reflection on the criminal justice agencies involved. These cases would remain unsolved if not for extraordinary detective work by dedicated criminal justice professionals in these agencies.
Case studies presented on this site are from an NIJ-funded independent study. Points of view or opinions in the resulting report are those of the authors and do not represent the official position or policies of the United States Department of Justice.
THIRTEEN PREVENTABLE RAPES
In August of 1993 a young woman was raped in the Bronx in what was to be the first of up to 51 rapes attributed to the same offender over a five-year period. The perpetrator was dubbed the "Bronx Rapist" by the media.
A person known to the police became a suspect when he was identified in a transaction involving a victim's jewelry at a pawnshop. He was arrested and subsequent DNA testing linked him to several of the rapes. He has been convicted on fourteen counts of rape in the Bronx, six counts of sexual abuse, nineteen counts of robbery, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon. He has been sentenced to two life sentences.
Preventable Crime: This offender had a prior conviction in 1989 for felony robbery and assault, for which he received a seven-year sentence. If the State of New York had begun requiring DNA from all convicted felons in 1990 this offender would have been on the DNA database prior to the first rape in 1993, and at least thirteen rapes could have been prevented. Moreover, when New York's database was established in 1994, an inclusion of all convicted felons and retroactive application to persons previously convicted but still under supervision would have captured this offender's DNA sample much earlier in the investigation.
TWO PREVENTABLE SEXUAL ASSAULTS, ONE PREVENTABLE DEATH
From 1991 to 1999, three young women were murdered in New York City and four others were raped. The youngest victim was 13, and several of the crimes were noted for their brutality. During the course of the investigation, police identified a man who had just been released from jail for a sex crime in the same area in which a victim had been raped. He had been seen in the neighborhood just before and after the rape, and was picked out of a lineup. The man was jailed for four months, but DNA testing subsequently eliminated the man as a suspect.
Another person known to the police became a suspect in these crimes in 1999 and was placed under surveillance by police. He was eventually arrested on petty theft charges and DNA testing later linked him to evidence from the crimes. This person had been released from custody pending the DNA testing, and was arrested again in Miami after the DNA match was made. He was found with a young woman who may have been his next victim. This offender was found guilty on twenty-two counts, and sentenced to 400 years in prison.
Preventable Crime: This offender had been convicted of felony robbery in 1992 at a time when New York did not collect DNA samples from criminals convicted of felony robbery. Moreover, if a 1996 expansion of the database to include robbery convictions had been applied retroactively, he could have been required to provide a DNA sample at this point. The sample would have been linked to one of the previous crimes, thereby preventing at least two sexual assaults against juveniles and one death. It is also worth noting that a sooner DNA match would have prevented an innocent man from spending four months in prison.
SEVEN PREVENTABLE RAPES AND ROBBERIES
In 2001 it was revealed that New York City had between 14,000 and 16,000 unanalyzed rape kits that were sitting in a storage rooms. Through a focused backlog reduction program, the City has been analyzing the rape kits and loading them into the state DNA database system.
In 2002, two unsolved rapes that were part of the backlog reduction project were connected to the same offender. The offender's criminal history included five prior arrests which resulted in two separate felony convictions—in 1991 for robbery and sexual abuse, and in 1997 for armed robbery. Although New York was not collecting DNA from robbery convictions in 1997, a 2000 law expanded the database to include robbery and included offenders who were still incarcerated for previous convictions. Upon release in 2001, the offender in question was required to give a DNA sample for the database.
Preventable Crime: This offender was arrested in December 2001 for a series of rapes and robberies (seven separate incidents). If the 1996 rape kits had been tested sooner, this person would have been linked to these assaults in 2001 prior to his release, thereby preventing the subsequent 7 attacks occurring after his release.
NIJ Funded Study
The cases are from National Forensic DNA Study Report and were developed using basic assumptions. For a full discussion on the review methodology that led to the conclusions presented here, see Section VI. "Forensic DNA and Crime Prevention." The report and case studies were prepared by Smith Alling Lane in partnership with Washington State University through the support of a grant awarded by the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice (Grant 2002-LT-BX-K 003). Points of view or opinions in this report are those of the authors and do not represent the official position or policies of the United States Department of Justice.
