SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 25
(By Senator Jenkins)
Urging the United States Congress provide reauthorization for the
Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program.
Whereas, DNA technology is increasingly vital to ensuring
accuracy and fairness in the criminal justice system, but is not
yet considered a routine tool for criminal identification by law
enforcement. Over 50,000 law-enforcement investigations have
already been aided nationwide because of DNA matches made through
the FBI's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), bringing justice to
victims and removing criminals from the streets. The Innocence
Project has used DNA in over 200 cases to exonerate persons who
were wrongfully convicted of crimes; and
Whereas, The State of West Virginia and other states
throughout the nation have significantly expanded their DNA
programs to include a growing number of convicted or arrested and
convicted felons to match against unsolved crimes. The demand for
DNA testing in both violent and nonviolent crimes has continued to
increase as the reliability of this evidence is proven. Many
laboratories still maintain DNA backlogs of six months or longer
and are unable to meet the growing demand for DNA testing despite
funding commitments from state and local governments; and
Whereas, The Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program has permitted state and local governments an opportunity to begin to
maximize the full potential of forensic DNA through backlog
reduction, but much work remains to be done; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate:
That the Senate hereby urges the United States Congress to
reauthorize the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hereby
directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the presiding
officer of each chamber of Congress and to each member of West
Virginia's congressional delegation.
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