Traces of Crime: How New York’s DNA Techniques Became Tainted

September 5, 2017

(New York Times) – Now these DNA analysis methods are under the microscope, with scientists questioning their validity. In court testimony, a former lab official said she was fired for criticizing one method, and a former member of the New York State Commission on Forensic Science said he had been wrong when he approved their use. The first expert witness allowed by a judge to examine the software source code behind one technique recently concluded that its accuracy “should be seriously questioned.” Earlier this year, the lab shelved the two methods and replaced them with newer, more broadly used technology.