RMP (nDNA only)

Prosecutors should be careful to avoid statistical misrepresentations. RMP (or its reciprocal) is not the probability of selecting someone other than the suspect who possesses the DNA profile at issue, and the RMP is NOT an estimate of the probability of guilt. The greater the number of conclusive loci forming the basis of the match in the evidence sample, the more unlikely it is to find an unrelated person who possesses the same DNA profile as the crime scene evidence.

At a defined certainty level (as set by the typing laboratory), and when the RMP equals or is less than a specified value, some labs will report an individual to be the source of the DNA. One lab may report an individual as the source when the RMP is less than or equal to the equivalent of 1 in 280 billion persons. Another lab may report "this profile would not be expected to occur more than once in the world's population amongst unrelated persons."
 

Practice Point - RMP

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