This podcast episode discusses how statutes regarding lawfully owed DNA and familial DNA searches are utilized in sexual assault investigations.
In this third episode of Just Science Podcast’s 2023 Sexual Assault Awareness Month mini season, the host, Tyler Raible, interviews Orlando Salinas, Lieutenant Trampas Gooding, and Jennifer Pollock from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). The podcasters discuss state legislation on lawfully owed DNA and familial DNA searches are utilized in sexual assault investigations, noting that some states allow the use of familial DNA searching in the combined DNA index system (CODIS). The three guests describe how they collect lawfully owed DNA samples, conduct familial DNA searches, and discuss specific cases that have been solved by using those investigative tools.