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What Every Law Enforcement Officer Should Know About DNA Evidence

Investigators and Evidence Technicians

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National Institute of Justice (NIJ) (see reuse policy).

Some of the challenging cases in recent law enforcement history have been solved by DNA evidence found in unusual places. The following excerpts are from cases in which DNA was found in non-traditional locations.

A threatening letter was sent to a newspaper editor. The FBI Lab sampled the envelope flap and recovered some cells (saliva) that were then typed for DNA. The profile from the envelope flap was compared to a known suspect's profile and was found to match.

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