A recent examination of Minnesota records revealed that 85 felons did not submit a required DNA sample in 2010.
Ramsey County Attorney John Choi asked Richard Dusterhoft to re-examine case files after it was brought to his attention that some DNA samples weren’t collected. Dusterhoft, who works in the criminal division, said he was alarmed by what he discovered.
“Eighty-five in 2010, that was a big surprise to me, that it was as many as it was,” he said.
Since the discovery, law enforcement agencies have successfully tracked down 61 of the 85 felons and collected DNA samples, but 24 samples remain uncollected for various reasons. Police are still working to collect the missing samples.
DNA’s Important Role
One of the main reasons why DNA evidence is collected from convicted felons is so authorities can enter the information into a national database. Law enforcement agencies around the country can access this information, and oftentimes these databases help solve current or past crimes.
“This potentially could solve past crimes and could lead to solving future crimes,” said Choi. “That’s one reason why we’ve spent a lot of energy and focus on this — because we can see the value to the public’s safety.”
DNA is linking more criminals to crimes than ever before, and authorities have a better success rate when they work with a more comprehensive database. DNA collection is also important because officials can see if newly entered samples match “cold case” files from years ago.
Who’s to Blame?
Felons are ordered to submit DNA during sentencing, but it’s not always collected in the same place. A judge can order the sample to be collected at the county workhouse, local law enforcement center, public health department, probation office or prison. Sometimes a judge doesn’t know where the felon will be taken, so no location for collection is determined.
“It turned out that in 22 of the cases, if a box wasn’t checked, then everybody just figured somebody else was going to do it and it just didn’t get done,” Dusterhoft said.
Other felons were taken into custody by immigration officials before DNA samples were collected.
Although the number seems high, the 85 felons only represent about 5% of 1,639 people who were ordered to submit a sample. 61 samples have since been collected, dropping the total left uncollected to 1.5%.
Related source: Star Tribune
