Validity of DNA evidence for purposes of Halakhah (part 1)

Abstract

Deoxyribonucleic (DNA) testing is most often associated with attempts to identify criminal perpetrators or to exonerate persons accused of a crime. Identification by means of DNA is particularly useful in placing a suspect at the scene of a crime. Except for identical twins no two persons are known to possess identical DNA. In 1984 scientists developed a means of isolating DNA in a sample provided by a crime suspect or victim and comparing it with a sample recovered from a crime scene or from clothing worn by the suspect. Although the presence of DNA does not in itself conclusively prove the guilt of a suspect, it is a crucial factor in establishing guilt by means of circumstantial evidence. •DNA evidence is, logically speaking, most compelling in establishing paternity since a shared DNA profile constitutes extremely strong statistical evidence of a paternal-filial relationship. In paternity cases, a partial overlap of some DNA structures in different individuals is evidence that the persons compared had at least one common progenitor and hence are related