Taking a DNA sample with a cheeck swab
/ file photo
ALBANY -- Governor Andrew Cuomo's push to expand the DNA database is getting a lot of support.
Every District Attorney and County Sheriff in the state, along with 400 police chiefs and victims advocacy groups, are endorsing the expansion bill.
Right now, only people convicted of felonies or select misdemeanors are required to submit a DNA sample. The governor's bill would expand that to include all misdemeanors. Aggravated animal cruelty charges and prescription drug offenses would also be included.
The DNA database was created in 1996. Since then, the governor's office says it has helped convict nearly 2,900 suspects, and helped exonerate 27 innocent New Yorkers. The last time the database was expanded was in 2006.
Family members of a Central New York murder victim has been vocal in their support for expanding the DNA database. Carol Nelson was killed in 2007. Her daughters say DNA could have connected her killer, Glenn Shoop, to another crime. If that was the case, he could have been behind bars before Nelson's death.
The bill has already passed the Senate and is now being debated by the Assembly.
Opponents of the bill have expressed concerns about privacy rights for both suspects and victims.
