Rock solid! 100% accurate No mistakes. Absolutely certain of guilt.
…remember all those claims for the accuracy of DNA evidence? Well, it turns out they’re wrong.
DNA evidence can be falsified, relatively easily if you have a scientific bent and some lab equipment.
The New York Times reported (18 Aug 09) that scientists in Israel have shown it’s possible to fabricate DNA evidence, undermining the credibility of what has been considered the gold standard of proof in criminal cases.
The scientists fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. They also showed that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they could construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without obtaining any tissue from that person.
“You can just engineer a crime scene,” said Dan Frumkin, lead author of the paper, which has been published online by the journal Forensic Science International: Genetics. “Any biology undergraduate could perform this.”
Dr. Frumkin is a founder of Nucleix, a company based in Tel Aviv that has developed a test to distinguish real DNA samples from fake ones that it hopes to sell to forensics laboratories.
The planting of fabricated DNA evidence at a crime scene is only one implication of the findings. A potential invasion of personal privacy is another: you could capture someone’s DNA and use it for mischievious or illegal reasons just as easily.
Read The New York Times article