New York DNA Crime Lab - New York Times

To the Editor:

Re “Doubts and DNA Evidence” (front page, Sept. 5):

The New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner stands behind our world-class DNA crime laboratory and the scientific techniques used in the independent service of justice, without favor to prosecution or defense.

Findings produced by our lab exonerate the innocent and convict the guilty. Defense lawyers and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have asked our office to run “high-sensitivity testing” and the Forensic Statistical Tool, or F.S.T., for their casework needs. Any serious discussion of these techniques must mention recent high-profile instances of wrongly convicted people being freed thanks to these two tools.

Early this year, our lab upgraded technology to comply with new F.B.I. requirements, and the increased sensitivity of DNA testing made possible by these changes rendered high-sensitivity testing and F.S.T. unnecessary. The upgrades were announced months in advance; our transition to these newer methods is evidence of our commitment to continuous improvement.

Both high-sensitivity testing and the F.S.T. have been intensively reviewed and approved for use in casework by the state government oversight agency, which includes a panel of distinguished scientific experts. The techniques have also been upheld by multiple courts.

BARBARA A. SAMPSON, NEW YORK

The writer is New York City’s chief medical examiner.

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