Senator Tarr’s Statement on a Supreme Court DNA Decision

“Today’s monumental decision by the Supreme Court makes it clear that collecting DNA evidence from those arrested of a crime doesn’t violate the Constitution or the rights of those involved.  With this decision in hand, our Commonwealth should act quickly and decisively to provide our criminal justice system with a powerful tool that has tremendous power to exonerate the innocent, prosecute the guilty, and identify those who may pose a further threat to public safety.

My conversations with those in law enforcement, victims, their advocates, and others have made a compelling case that DNA evidence collected after arraignment can be properly safeguarded and disposed of if a conviction isn’t obtained, and that the benefits from collecting it are substantial.

Senate Bill 1176 authorizes this modern-day version of fingerprinting, and the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security should act on it as soon as possible.”

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