Monday, June 3, 2013
My Statement on a Supreme Court DNA Decision
Today I released the
following statement regarding a Supreme Court decision (Maryland v. King)
allowing police departments to collect DNA samples from people arrested of a
crime:
“Today’s monumental decision by the Supreme Court makes it
clear that collecting DNA evidence from those arrested of a crime doesn’t
violate the Constitution or the rights of those involved. With this decision in hand, our Commonwealth
should act quickly and decisively to provide our criminal justice system with a
powerful tool that has tremendous power to exonerate the innocent, prosecute
the guilty, and identify those who may pose a further threat to public safety.
My conversations with those in law enforcement, victims, their
advocates, and others have made a compelling case that DNA evidence collected
after arraignment can be properly safeguarded and disposed of if a conviction
isn’t obtained, and that the benefits from collecting it are substantial.
Senate Bill 1176 authorizes this modern-day version of
fingerprinting, and the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security
should act on it as soon as possible.”
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Click here to read the bill in its entirety.
