SR0642 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0642 LRB095 20404 GRL 47943 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, DNA technology is increasingly vital to ensuring accuracy and fairness in the criminal justice system, but is not yet considered a routine tool for criminal identification by law enforcement; and

WHEREAS, Over 50,000 law enforcement investigations have already been aided nationwide because of DNA matches made through the FBI's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), bringing justice to victims and removing criminals from the streets; and

WHEREAS, The Innocence Project has used DNA in over 200 cases to exonerate persons who were wrongfully convicted of crimes; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois and other states throughout the nation have significantly expanded their DNA programs to include a growing number of convicted and/or arrested felons to match against unsolved crimes; and

WHEREAS, The demand for DNA testing in both violent and non-violent crimes has continued to increase as the reliability of this evidence is proven; and

WHEREAS, Many laboratories still maintain DNA backlogs of six months or longer and are unable to meet the growing demand for DNA testing despite funding commitments from state and local governments; and

WHEREAS, The Debbie Smith DNA backlog grant program has permitted state and local governments an opportunity to begin to maximize the full potential of forensic DNA through backlog reduction, but much work remains to be done; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we strongly urge the United States Congress to reauthorize the Debbie Smith DNA backlog grant program at current or increased levels; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the Majority Leader and Minority Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the Illinois congressional delegation.