Pennsylvania prosecutors use TrueAllele in homicide guilty plea

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TrueAllele® investigation of DNA evidence

M. W. Perlin, "TrueAllele® investigation of DNA evidence", Cold Case Homicide Investigation Course , Pennsylvania State Police, Hershey, PA, Oct-2021.


Talk

PowerPoint presentation of Dr. Perlin's talk.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

PDFDownload Handout
PPTDownload PowerPoint

Abstract


At the invitation of the Pennsylvania State Police, Cybergenetics Chief Scientist Dr. Mark Perlin gave a series of talks on the afternoon of October 27, 2021. He spoke about Cybergenetics TrueAllele® for getting useful identification information out of previously useless DNA evidence.

TrueAllele has been widely used in Pennsylvania since 2008, gaining appellate precedent in 2012. Cybergenetics has assisted in over 200 cases, testified in over 25 trials, and worked across over 30 counties. The company has conducted DNA training courses in the state for police, prosecutors, criminal defenders, crime laboratories, university students, forensic nurses, and county judges.

TrueAllele does not share the limitations of other DNA interpretation software. The scientific technology uses all the data, considers all possibilities, is accurate, unbiased, and gives error rates. Cybergenetics free screening policy lets everyone – on any side – benefit from helpful TrueAllele information.

Dr. Perlin’s first talk explained when criminal justice needs TrueAllele. This typically occurs when a crime lab cannot report results from DNA evidence, because of:

  • insufficient quantity of DNA
  • complexity of DNA mixture
  • no interpretable results
  • inconclusive results

The second talk taught the police how TrueAllele is presented in court. This was done using the same PowerPoint slides that Dr. Perlin had shown jurors in Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Dante Washington. This Williamsport homicide case was tried in February of 2016.

The third talk described Cybergenetics automated TrueAllele database. The uniquely powerful probabilistic genotyping database can connect the DNA dots for:

  • reopening the past – cold cases gang crime & handguns
  • retail theft
  • drug counterfeiting
  • mass disasters & missing persons
  • automated familial search

Dr. Perlin reviewed a forensic conference talk given by the TrueAllele crime laboratory in Cleveland, Ohio. The presentation was on how to “use a database feature in the TrueAllele Casework system to cross-reference DNA cases”. Working automatically, the TrueAllele system found far more DNA information – for far less effort – than previous DNA analysis methods.


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