Bill proposed to reinstate DNA collection for crimes eligible for Prop 47.
As groups like The Innocence Project have shown, DNA evidence has become an extremely important tool for proving the innocence of defendants as well as for exonerating individuals wrongfully convicted in the days prior to widespread DNA testing. However, DNA evidence can also be very valuable for the police in solving crimes and for the prosecution in securing convictions.
DNA samples are routinely collected from individuals arrested in felony or wobbler cases. These samples are then stored in a database which can be referenced by police in future cases. According to San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos, these DNA samples are an extremely valuable crime-fighting tool. In his experience, over 30 percent of the samples collected in this way have proved useful in solving some very serious crimes including kidnapping and rape.
Following the passage of Prop 47, authorities are finding it difficult to grow their pool of potential DNA evidence for future cases. Under Prop 47, many wobbler crimes that were previously able to be tried as felonies, including most low-level theft and drug offenses, must now always be tried as misdemeanors. This is a source of concern and frustration to prosecutors, since DNA samples cannot be automatically taken from defendants in misdemeanor cases.
Together with Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert and various state lawmakers, District Attorney Ramos is sponsoring a bill that will override the impact of Prop 47 on DNA collection, enabling authorities to take DNA samples from any individual whose crime was a felony or “wobbler” prior to the passage of Prop 47.
Proponents of the bill expect it will be an easy sell to lawmakers, due to the fact that the main goal of the bill is to help victims and their families by restoring an important crime-fighting tool. Supporters of DNA collection from arrested individuals liken the process to taking fingerprints, and a recent appeals court ruling has confirmed this view and found that California’s DNA collection practices are not too broad or in violation of individual rights.
Reinstating DNA collection for wobblers affected by Prop 47 does not seem incompatible with the goal of the new law, which was to assist individuals convicted of low-level, non-violent offenses in successfully reentering society and rebuilding their lives following a conviction. The evidence can prove just as useful in excluding individuals from consideration as a suspect in a future crime as for bringing suspicion upon them.
To learn more about how Prop 47 may affect your case as it progresses through the legal system, please contact Chambers Law Firm for a free consultation with an experienced Prop 47 lawyer.
