Science has come along way to help authorities solve crime but investigators still make assumptions that are not always valid. DNA testing is a wonderfully accurate tool as circumstantial evidence if used properly, it can have the benefit of eliminating potential suspects and lower the risk of wrongful convictions. However, DNA testing like blood testing previously is only circumstantial, it cannot give the circumstances, time and date of its deposit. This is very important since investigators will find the traces of individuals that may have had contact with the victim in prior months and possibly years.

We hear stories of DNA being pulled from people long dead, exhumed from the grave and even from bone fragments and hair. Prosecutors have recently begun DNA testing on cold case files trying to match those results with known felon databases. We know from experience that most crime is committed by repeat offenders. We also know that all crime sprees eventually come to an end, the criminal does get caught for one crime, but maybe not all of them.

However, like all tools, DNA testing can be misused. Since investigators are in the role of pointing the accusing finger, their mindset may exclude other reasonable possible explanations in regards to how the clues all fit together. We say this since there are investigators and prosecutors who cross the line from trying to determine the guilty party to solve the case to just solving the case by selecting someone of the desired gender and color. It has happened and is particularly true when crimes such as rape and murder occur. We have over 140 men exonerated from death row to make this point. The temptation for authorities to close cases by accusing those already in jail is huge, especially when one comes with the mindset that "you may not be guilty of this particular crime, but you probably were of another similar crime, convicting you of this one therefore is not a miscarriage of justice." Both police and investigators have been known to plant evidence.