The chapter concludes with the results of the telephone survey of DNA laboratories. The 28 cases in this study were tried in 14 States and the District of Columbia.
Many cases share a number of descriptive characteristics, as noted below.
Most cases mid- to late 1980s. Most cases involved convictions that occurred in the 1980s, primarily mid- to late 1980s, a period when forensic DNA technology was not readily accessible. The earliest case involved a conviction in 1979, the most recent in 1991. In each of the 28 cases, a defendant was convicted of a crime or crimes and serving a sentence of incarceration. While in prison, each defendant obtained, through an attorney, case evidence for DNA testing and consented to a comparison of the evidence-derived DNA to his own DNA sample.