Build reliability into DNA database

Advances in DNA technology have given law enforcement a valuable tool in solving crimes.

But there has to be a reliable tracking system in place in order to use DNA samples to identify and convict those who have committed crimes. Alarmingly, that is not the case in Illinois, at least when it comes to compiling DNA data on all convicted felons.

In 2002, the state created a genetic database. It gives police the ability to compare crime scene DNA against the DNA of known criminals. To this end, convicted felons are required to submit to DNA testing under state law. But as many as 30,000 convicted felons may have been released from Illinois prisons in recent years before providing DNA samples for that database.

So many of the worst among us who might be linked to unsolved murders, rapes and assaults through DNA cannot now be identified and held accountable for these crimes.

The problem has been blamed on bureaucratic snafus. At first, prisons were not prepared to gather samples. They did not have the needed kits to do so. Also, there weren't enough phlebotomists available to take blood samples when these were needed to collect DNA. Now saliva samples are taken to make collection easier.

This dangerous gap in the DNA database needs to be closed, not only to get criminals off the streets and hopefully bring closure to unsolved crimes, but to assure people aren't falsely accused of crimes when DNA can lead police to the guilty parties.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has formed a team of police and prosecutors to review the database. Its aim is to find those who have slipped through the cracks by compiling a list of felony offenders whose DNA is missing from the database. The group will also identify the scope of missing samples, and develop a reliable system for locating and collecting missing samples.

Also under consideration is putting information on missed DNA tests into police computers. This way, if a convicted felon is pulled over, police would know if a DNA sample has been taken from that individual.

Madigan also notes that many offenders who did not provide DNA are likely to end up back in prison, when samples can be collected.

That is true. But far better to have a system that can be counted on to get DNA samples from convicted felons before they are released from prison in the first place.

We urge Madigan and her team of law enforcement professionals to complete their work quickly, making all changes necessary to build confidence in the reliability of the DNA database. This is imperative in the interest of public safety and in assuring prosecutors have all the tools they need to convict those truly guilty of crimes.