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What Every Law Enforcement Officer Should Know About DNA Evidence

Investigators and Evidence Technicians

DNA Analysis

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Image of DNA analysis depicting suspect, victim, and crime scene mixed stain samples
National Institute of Justice (NIJ) (see reuse policy).

DNA analysis is similar to fingerprint analysis in how matches are determined. Evidence collected from a crime scene is compared to a known sample. If each feature is not identical, the DNA evidence is determined NOT to be a match and therefore did NOT come from the suspect.

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