A new national study shows DNA sweeps don't work to solve crimes. The
research, done in Omaha by the University of Nebraska-Omaha's criminal
justice department, comes as the Omaha Police Department has been
conducting DNA tests. Omaha police have been gathering DNA from a few
black men in Omaha after four women were raped over the past two years.
Many of the men tested work at the Omaha Public Power District. The
procedure has created controversy, and last month, a judge said the
affidavits that led to the order allowing police to take DNA samples
should be unsealed. UNO's study looked at 18 rape and murder cases
across the United States. In all 18 cases, police tested DNA samples of
potential suspects based on a profile, but in only one case did the DNA
testing actually solve the crime. The study's concludes that police DNA
sweeps have proven to be extremely unproductiveA DNA sweep in Omaha has
yet to result in the arrest of a serial rapist. Omaha Police Chief
Thomas Warren was not available to comment on the new study. In the
past, the chief has said that Omaha police had reason to believe that
the serial rapist was a black man who worked for OPPD. [more ]
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