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Where did I say the DNA only came from the shirt? I get that <modsnip>
I am not sure what you mean. <modsnip> Forensics is a tool, a flawed one. It has been under scrutiny for at least a decade for lacking in scientific rigor. DNA profiling is yet one tool in an arsenal that can strengthen a case; yet it is just one contextual thing, and its strength or weakness in a case depends on other evidence. That was my over all point, <modsnip>
Last I checked, CODIS is a database that collects genetic data for comparison and matching of chromosomal loci. It is a matching tool; it is not an infallible, omniscient forensic god. <modsnip> Maybe you do have some expertise on just how CODIS works and its statistical reliability. How searches can yield a wide range of results with verification of race being but one partial result. Since you are <modsnip> knowledgeable, please explain just how CODIS works, and all the kinds of data it yields. Also what exactly does a match include about a person?
Really? Read on...
BBM Did I say that any and all DNA found only on that shirt was entered into CODIS? Genetic or DNA sampling must be taken from several places from evidence including both human tissue and things like clothing; then narrowed down to identify pertinent samples. So you are saying that only DNA taken from evidence at the crime scene is the only credible source? In addition to genetic interference from the shirt's locale outdoors, it likely had many traces from Morgan's friends or anyone else she had contact with prior to her disappearance. Genetic sampling is a process of exclusion and refinement. As for that shirt left in public, how could I be so dense...?
In April, five months after its discovery, police announced that forensic evidence revealed that the Pantera t-shirt...did, in fact, belong to Morgan. That forensic evidence, says Barfield, was most likely DNA–- and, he says, a likely source for the match with the Fairfax case since extracting an assailant's DNA evidence from Morgan's decomposed remains, which were exposed to the elements for three months, would have been very difficult. (Like farm owner Bass, the UVA student who discovered the t-shirt had not yet been shown the composite sketch when a reporter showed it to him.)
note: Barfield is a forensic expert and retired, local LEO who offers genetic profiling services.
Sigh. Again, yes actually it can. I am not saying it provided only a partial match on race. Records can simply be used to establish more certainty of race. I said that it could have been used to verify race at minimum. We are not privy to what it established. <modsnip>