'Cold Hit' DNA Matches Resolve Record Number of Criminal Cases
Sheriff Says Twenty-Two Cases Resolved In One Day
NBC4-TV Los Angeles
September 26, 2006
SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Twenty-two languishing criminal cases were declared resolved -- all in one day -- when sheriff's forensics workers obtained DNA matches and broke a previous record, the department announced Tuesday.
The record on matches set last month was shattered last Thursday, according to Jim Amormino of the Orange County Sheriff's Department.
The 22 cases, now on their way to prosecutors for the filing of charges, include two attempted homicide and stolen vehicle cases apiece; four rape and burglary cases each, one arson case and nine robberies, Amormino said.
The previous record-setting number of cases resolved on a single day was14, Amormino said.
When DNA evidence is collected in a criminal case and a suspect is not known, the DNA profile from the crime scene can be uploaded to local, state and national DNA databases and a search launched from profiles originating from known felons that are also kept in the databases, Amormino said.
A "cold hit" is made when a DNA profile from a crime scene sample is matched to a DNA profile belonging to a felon, Amormino said.
Sheriff Mike Carona said matches would only accelerate under the voter-approved Proposition 69, which expanded the gathering of DNA from inmates.
"With the capabilities of our crime lab and the voter support behind Proposition 69, we see the ability for DNA to prevent future crime by taking career criminals off the street earlier in their criminal escalation," Carona said.
The department's Forensic Science Services Division is Orange County's only accredited, full-service law enforcement crime lab, and services are provided to all law enforcement agencies within the county.
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