DeSoto County Rapid DNA System

Given the success and subsequent increased demand for supporting DNA evidence, timely DNA processing for less violent crimes has been impacted. These delays lead to slower or missed suspect identification, inefficient or missed investigative leads, lower solve rates, and compromised public safety. DeSoto County, Mississippi proposes to implement a Rapid DNA investigative leads program in partnership with the DeSoto County crime team. This program aims to automate the testing process for single-source and reference samples to generate timely investigative leads, eliminate and identify suspects, avoid unnecessary arrests, and swiftly identify unidentified human remains. This will improve investigative and operational efficiencies and outcomes for both law enforcement and the forensic crime laboratory. Moreover, community relationships will improve when potential suspects are quickly eliminated and identified with forensic science methods that minimize racial and socio-economic biases. All these benefits enhance public safety and create safer communities.

    Project activities include implementing policies and procedures adhering to the Non-CODIS Rapid DNA Considerations and Best Practices for Law Enforcement Use, purchasing and installing Rapid DNA Systems, integrating Rapid DNA information into a dedicated, secure network, conducting end-to-end integration testing, training personnel, and managing and coordinating the program with supporting and participating agencies to ensure the highest quality. Expected outcomes include enhanced investigative leads, increased operational efficiency, improved public safety, strengthened criminal justice outcomes, and long-term tax dollar savings. Additionally, the Rapid DNA programs will help ease the burden on the laboratory, allowing it to focus on more complex casework and operational and technology enhancements. The regional nearby laboratory being used in testing currently takes years to process, causing serious delay times in prosecution. Therefore, these improvements provided by implementing the Rapid DNA Systems will benefit the residents of DeSoto County, the surrounding region, and ultimately all residents of Mississippi.

    Currently, the clearance rate for crimes is around 25%. With a recidivism rate of 43%, it is estimated that 4,600 out of 10,700 yearly arrests involve individuals who have committed multiple crimes. Implementing a Rapid DNA system would quickly identify repeat offenders when they commit new crimes. Furthermore, the presence of a field-level DNA system could discourage crime due to the fear of easy identification. Currently, DNA samples are sent to a state crime lab, taking up to two years to yield results, and they can only confirm a known suspect sample against a crime scene sample, requiring prior knowledge of the suspect. The Rapid DNA system allows crime scene samples to be compared against a database of previous samples, enabling the identification of unknown suspects in less than 90 minutes.

    With yearly incarcerations of 10,700 and a recidivism rate of 43.5%, DeSoto County conducts approximately 1,200 criminal investigations and secures around 300 indictments annually. The implementation of Rapid DNA technology will significantly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of these investigative processes.