Requesting DNA Samples From Victims
Unreasonable and intrusive sample collection should be avoided to prevent retraumatization of victims. Access to third parties should be permitted for elimination purposes only. When requesting samples from a victim after conviction, prosecutors and victims' advocates should weigh the level of trauma experienced by the victim at the time of the crime and the potentially traumatic impact of testing the victim along with the possibility of a determinative outcome.
Requests should be made only through the prosecutor, investigator, or victims' advocate.
The technical aspects of testing and the significance of the samples requested should be explained in detail so the victim understands how it will be collected, how it will be used, and what testing results may mean. It should be made clear to victims and third parties that DNA samples are to be used for elimination purposes only. (See Victim Advocates: What You Should Know.)
Victims, or third parties associated with the victim, may refuse to provide samples for testing. Prosecutors and advocates should strongly encourage voluntary compliance by victims and third parties in order to avoid orders by the court for testing. Courts should be strongly discouraged from ordering victims to provide samples for testing except as a last resort.
Victims who consent to testing should be provided with as much choice as possible with regard to the timing, method, and location of the testing. The preference would be to use the least invasive method. When possible, the victim should be allowed to choose the type of sample to be used, such as buccal swab rather than a blood sample.
Prosecutors or victims' advocates should provide escort and transportation assistance for testing, hearings, and meetings, if needed.
Go to the Next Section: Ensuring Privacy of Victims and Survivors
Download the complete document: Postconviction DNA Testing: Recommendations for Handling Requests (Adobe PDF)
