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What Every Law Enforcement Officer Should Know About DNA Evidence

Investigators and Evidence Technicians

Matching Profiles Using CODIS

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COmbined DNA Index System (CODIS)
National Institute of Justice (NIJ) (see reuse policy).

If the DNA profile from a crime scene matches an offender's profile in CODIS, there are three possible outcomes:

  • The match may link two or more unsolved cases, which allows investigators to coordinate their activities.
  • The match may link a solved case with an unsolved case.
  • The match may link two or more solved cases, which would be useful information to prosecutors in the adjudication of each case.

Remember: One hit can link multiple investigations. For example, a single hit in Minnesota linked 16 crime scenes to one suspect.

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