20 Years of Transforming Criminal Justice with DNA

In March 1985, British scientist Alec Jeffreys published a paper in Nature first describing the concept of a DNA “fingerprint” – the idea that the variation in DNA sequence from person to person could be used as a unique identifier similar to traditional, physical fingerprints. This paper heralded a major innovation—the use of DNA as a forensic tool. Over the past 20 years, this innovation has revolutionized criminal justice, and its potential power and utility are still being discovered.

Dr. Jeffreys’ innovation two decades ago was based on a growing body of DNA data showing that while the type and organization of genes found in each individual were the same, the DNA sequence at specific sites varied from person to person (except for identical twins, who are thought to share exact copies of each other’s DNA). These variations are inherited in the same manner as genes that govern visible traits such as eye color or hair color and can be “visualized” using the latest advances in molecular biology. By assembling a collection of these variable sites, a unique pattern of variation, or genetic profile, can be determined for every person. In addition, because these patterns of variation are passed down to offspring, they can be used to determine familial and genealogical relationships using known principles of genetic inheritance.

For example, individuals who were closely related to one another or whose ancestors come from similar backgrounds would have less variation in these genetic signatures, and unrelated individuals would have more variation. These relationships can be determined by DNA analysis in a systematic and quantifiable way. Although the basic concepts follow the rules of genetic inheritance that had been discovered in the 19th century, the application of 20th century technology made DNA fingerprint analysis a powerful tool for establishing identity, paternity and other familial relationships.

During the remainder of 1985, Dr. Jeffreys proved the value of DNA fingerprinting as a forensic tool. In October he published a paper in Nature describing the use of the technology to establish a familial relationship between a young boy and his family, thus resolving an immigration case that had been pending in the British courts. A December publication in Nature demonstrated that DNA could be isolated from 4-year old blood and semen evidence and used to generate DNA fingerprints suitable for identification of the individual uniquely associated with that evidence.

The next year, Dr. Jeffreys had an opportunity to try his new technology in a real criminal case when a man confessed to raping and murdering a young girl in the U.K. town of Enderby. A similar rape and murder had occurred in 1983, and police suspected that the perpetrator in both cases was the same man. They asked Dr. Jeffreys to analyze semen and blood samples from both crime scenes and blood from the confessed criminal. The analysis showed that the same man had raped both girls, but that it was not the man who had confessed. This first use of DNA profiling proved the innocence of the accused, but could the technology also be used to find a criminal? The answer was a resounding “yes.” By comparing the DNA profile from the evidence samples with DNA samples voluntarily obtained from 500 men in Enderby, police were able to identify the serial murderer, and he was sentenced to two life terms in prison. In its first real-world test, forensic DNA profiling had already demonstrated its great potential to change the face of criminal investigations, exonerating the innocent and identifying the guilty with a precision that was formerly unimaginable.

Over the past two decades, DNA fingerprinting technology has continued to evolve, and today automated processes make it feasible and cost effective to analyze DNA evidence from large numbers of crimes. A critical factor in increasing the crime-fighting utility of DNA evidence is the existence of large and growing databases of DNA profiles from convicted criminals, or in some jurisdictions, from all arrestees. Since many crimes are committed by repeat offenders, the larger the database, the more likely that the DNA evidence from a new crime will match an entry already in the database, thereby leading to rapid identification of the perpetrator. In the U.K., where the use of DNA evidence for criminal justice is most advanced, as many as 40% of all serious crimes are now solved by running DNA evidence against the national database.

Another important advance in DNA forensic science is the fact that the technologies in use today are applicable to very small samples of DNA – just a few cells can provide sufficient data to establish identity – as well as to samples of DNA that have been damaged or degraded. This means that DNA evidence can now be obtained from a cigarette butt, perspiration, a licked envelope or even a partial fingerprint!

Since the founding of its predecessor company Cellmark in 1987, just two years after Dr. Jeffreys’ discovery of DNA fingerprinting, Orchid Cellmark has been a leader in advancing the state-of-the-art of DNA fingerprinting technologies and in applying cutting-edge DNA testing to answer important questions in the courtroom, on the battlefield and within families. The company has conducted forensic DNA analyses for thousands of investigations, including such notable cases as O.J. Simpson, Jon Benet Ramsey, the Unabomber, Danielle Van Dam and the Green River murders. It has participated in efforts to identify the remains of historical figures like Christopher Columbus and Billy the Kid, and Orchid Cellmark has long supported the work of the Innocence Project, a pioneering organization that uses forensic DNA evidence to exonerate wrongly convicted individuals, including many on Death Row. In the U.K., Orchid Cellmark provides forensic DNA testing for the Metropolitan Police Service, also known as New Scotland Yard, as well as to other police forces in England and Wales.

Orchid Cellmark has also been an innovator in seeking wider use of DNA as a crime-fighting tool. In 2004, Orchid Cellmark proposed a new program to the New York City Police Department based on its experience as one of the leading private forensic DNA testing labs in the U.K. This became Biotracks—a pilot program to identify burglary suspects by matching DNA from crime scene evidence to DNA databases of convicted criminals. This is significant because burglary is one of the most common crimes, yet it is rarely solved. Worse, most burglars are repeat offenders and many go on to more violent crimes. Since it is now possible to obtain sufficient DNA from trace amounts of evidence left by a burglar at the crime scene, investigators can use this evidence to establish matches to criminals whose DNA is already in the database. Early results with the program have been very positive and Orchid Cellmark has been advised that New York officials hope to expand it soon.

Orchid Cellmark’s leadership in high throughput forensic DNA testing positions the company to work with states and municipalities in achieving the goals of the Justice for All Act of 2004. This groundbreaking legislation authorized the infusion of more than $1 billion in federal funds over the next five years to clear the current huge backlog of unanalyzed DNA evidence held in police evidence rooms, to afford greater access to DNA testing for convicted offenders and to expand the FBI’s national CODIS database.

Orchid Cellmark’s applications of DNA profiling technologies go beyond the criminal justice system. In 1991, the company was the first forensic DNA laboratory to apply a new DNA analysis system to the identification of casualties from the Persian Gulf War. Perhaps the company is most proud of its work with the New York Medical Examiner’s Office to identify victims of the 9/11 World Trade Center attack for whom conventional identification methods had failed. Orchid Cellmark applied its unique SNP technology that distinguishes variations in a single unit of genetic code to identify differences between individuals. This technology shows promise for identifying victims in accidents and disasters where only a small amount of DNA is available as a result of damage or degradation. Orchid Cellmark’s IDSecure? product is being used by an increasing number of organizations for personnel working in war or other danger zones to increase the chances of identification in case of an emergency.

Orchid Cellmark has also provided paternity and family relationship testing services since the 1980s. In Europe, it is the exclusive provider of immigration and paternity testing to the U.K. government.

Most recently, Orchid Cellmark launched the Heritage ID? product line, developed primarily for use by individuals. The first offering in this product line is a service that enables Native American tribes to confirm the genetic lineage of individuals seeking to enroll as tribal members. The second offering provides families with a simple and affordable way to preserve the DNA profiles of family members post-mortem. Information contained in the individual’s DNA profile may have important medical, legal and genealogical applications after a person’s death. Additional product offerings are planned, as applications of DNA testing increase and are being sought by individuals as well as institutions.

By continuing to innovate new applications of forensic DNA in the spirit of that first DNA fingerprint developed 20 years ago by the now Sir Alec Jeffreys, Orchid Cellmark is helping to realize the potential of our unique genetic profiles as an identifier of who we are, where we have been and where we may yet go in the future.