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OPINION & EDITORIAL

DNA backlog imperils justice

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Also by Meredith Togstad:

Student initiative merits reflection (September 19, 2007)
Controversial green plates for offenders will bolster safety, despite criticism (May 8, 2007)
Doyle education policies provide innovative solutions for Wisconsin (April 25, 2007)
Doyle's plan for energy laudable (April 12, 2007)
DNA backlog imperils justice (March 21, 2007)

by Meredith Togstad

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

As impatient citizens sit on the edge of their seats with eyes glued to any and every entertainment news program waiting for an update on the Anna Nicole Smith paternity suit, you cannot help but wonder what other similar DNA cases may also be caught in limbo. In Wisconsin alone, an increasing amount of crime and violence occurs each day, and an overflow of cases that require DNA analysis continually clog the state's sole crime lab. Therefore, it would be no surprise if both the victims of crime and average citizens alike cheered in response to the recent proposal to add 31 new positions to Wisconsin's crime lab. I think this justified addition of genetic investigators to our state's solitary crime lab will help do away with the unfortunate backlog of DNA cases, settle the stomachs of stressed-out crime victims and help restore the safety of Wisconsinites.

According to a recent press release from state Rep. Louis J. Molepske Jr., D-Stevens Point, an overabundance of urgent issues that beg for the attention of crime lab examiners inspired the proposal of bill AB-72, which would "provide funding for 31 additional positions at the State Crime Lab." This essential bill is intended to "help eliminate the current backlog by the year 2010." Although three years stand between now and the resolution of excess cases, the proposed bill still comes better late than never. According to Rep. Molepske, the accumulation of DNA cases "has created significant administrative problems for a number of counties that have been forced to try to resolve an increasing amount of DNA cases without a commensurate increase in staff."

Furthermore, the impending rise in crime lab employees will provide the assets for Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen to follow through on one of his campaign promises: "Our new Attorney General, J.B. Van Hollen, has vowed to eliminate the backlog in the crime lab by 2010. This bill gives him the resources to accomplish that goal," Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon, said in his March 13 press release. Then, in a recent release, Attorney General Van Hollen himself added, "I am grateful for the bipartisan support this measure received in the Legislature."

I appreciate that our state's politicians were confident enough to set a date on which the current surfeit of DNA analysis cases should be eradicated. This bill is a practical way to the crime lab's uncomfortable case imbalance.

In addition to reducing the number of unresolved DNA cases in Wisconsin's crime lab, I think Bill AB-72 will be successful in bringing a slight sense of calm to Wisconsin's crime victims whose trials remain up in the air. It is safe to say that after enduring any sort of traumatic incident, victims would hate nothing more than to settle for a vague and tentative case ruling. The addition of 31 crime lab positions will wash away this regrettable waiting game and help deliver justice for suffering Wisconsinites. According to Rep. Fitzgerald, keeping countless cases up in the air only keeps criminals from being caught. "We must remember that DNA evidence has an effect on real people. When an assault victim has to wait for trial or a criminal is left walking the streets, it has repercussions for us all. By getting the crime lab up to speed, we make Wisconsin a safer place to live," Rep. Fitzgerald said. Furthermore, Representative Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, agreed with Rep. Fitzgerald, saying the crime lab backlog has become a public safety issue. In his March 13 press release, he added, "When DNA testing is delayed, justice is delayed."

I applaud the recent efforts of Wisconsin's political representatives to bring justice into the homes of crime victims and catch the unpunished predators before it's again too late. I encourage all Wisconsinites to get behind Bill AB-72, and soon enough, the test tubes will be tossed and the hardened criminals will get what they deserve.

Meredith Togstad (togstad@wisc.edu) is a sophomore intending to major in journalism and French.

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Anonymous (March 21, 2007 @ 7:00am):

Good argument, but tidy up the language -- why would you ever include the words "I think" in an opinion column? Such isn't merely a redundancy but, too, an unnecessary self-reference in a column where the author ought not play the role of character but, rather, merely commentator.

-Victor Blake Marx

Anonymous (March 21, 2007 @ 3:21pm):

Welcome to two weeks ago... when this was actually a story.

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