Last week Governor Cuomo announced an historic agreement that will make New York state the first "all crimes DNA state in the nation." This requires DNA samples to be collected from ANYONE convicted of a felony or penal law misdemeanor. Also the bill will significantly expand defendants' access to DNA testing and comparison, both before and after conviction in appropriate circumstances, as well as to discovery after conviction to demonstrate their innocence.
"It is a proven fact that DNA helps solve crimes, prosecute the guilty and protects the innocent," said Governor Cuomo. "This bill will greatly improve law enforcement's ability to keep New York communities safe and bring justice to victims of violent crimes, as well as those who have been wrongly convicted." This will give law enforcement the best crime fighting tool to better protect New Yorkers.
For years this legislation has been caught in dysfunction and delays in Albany. For crime victims and their families this paralysis has been nothing but heartbreak.
Ann M., a mother from Queens, waited ten years for the man who raped her daughter to be brought to justice. The perpetrator committed a slew of other crimes, but none that required a DNA sample, as would be required under this bill. Click here to hear survivors speak out on the power of DNA to bring justice to all New Yorkers.
Without this law, only 48 percent of offenders convicted of a Penal Law offense were required to provide a DNA sample. Even with its limited information, the DNA databank provided leads in nearly 2,900 convictions.
Comments(5)