Opinion ID: 2623217
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Application of CRE 702 to Evidence at Issue

Text: Having determined that CRE 702 represents the proper standard, we now turn to the issue of whether the evidence derived from the DNA testing techniques at issue in this case is admissible under that standard. The trial court below did not have the benefit of our ruling and instead employed a thorough Frye analysis to conclude that the evidence was inadmissible. Alternatively, the trial court applied the Daubert factors to reach the same result. [13] Thus, a determination of admissibility under our new standard is required. Because the record in this case is sufficient for a determination of admissibility under CRE 702, we need not remand the case to the trial court. Instead, we conclude that, under CRE 702's liberal standard for admissibility, the evidence derived from the PE kits at issue here is admissible. As discussed above, admissibility under CRE 702 is appropriate when (1) the scientific principles at issue are reasonably reliable, (2) the witness is qualified to opine on such principles, and (3) the testimony will be useful to the jury. In this case, the parties do not question the qualification of the witness, nor do they dispute that the evidence will assist the jury. Thus, our main concern is whether the PCR-based multiplex STR system from which the evidence here was derived is sufficiently reliable. We begin by discussing the admissibility of PCR and STR-based DNA testing, as we have not previously addressed this issue. [14] The majority of courts in other jurisdictions that have considered the issue have held that DNA evidence derived from the PCR testing method satisfies the standards for admissibility under either Frye or Rule 702. [15] Indeed, the National Research Council's Committee on Forensic DNA Science has concluded that the molecular technology on which PCR is based is thoroughly sound, and that the results are highly reproducible when appropriate quality-control methods are followed. Shea, 957 F.Supp. at 338-39. Similarly, as the trial court has acknowledged, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has determined that there are several advantages of using STRs over conventional techniques, and that the use of STRs for genetic mapping and identity testing has become widespread among DNA typing laboratories. John M. Butler & Dennis J. Reeder, Short Tandem Repeat DNA Internet Database, http://www.cstl.nist.gov/biotech/strbase/intro.htm. As a result, many courts have found that DNA evidence derived from STR-based testing is admissible either under Frye 's general acceptance test or under Rule 702's reliability test. [16] The wide acceptance of PCR and STR testing among scientists and courts in various jurisdictions indicates that the use of such systems in DNA analysis is reliable. Furthermore, the evidence in the record demonstrates that unlike RFLP testing, which destroys the sample, PCR processing allows for easy replication of test results by amplifying the sample. We are therefore convinced that DNA evidence derived from PCR-based testing, and specifically such evidence derived from the STR method is sufficiently reliable under CRE 702 to warrant admission in Colorado. [17] The evidence at issue in this case was derived from a PCR-based STR multiplex system. [18] Specifically, the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits at issue here employed a combination sixplex and nineplex system. Having determined that PCR and STR-based testing are reliable under CRE 702, the issue before us now is whether the specific multiplex testing performed in this case is sufficiently reliable under CRE 702 to warrant admission of the evidence derived from their use. We agree with the trial court's conclusion that, in general, evidence derived from multiplex testing should be admitted. However, we reach this conclusion by applying CRE 702, rather than Frye. In doing so, we conclude, based on the scientific evidence presented under the totality of circumstances in this case, that multiplex testing is sufficiently reliable to warrant such admission. Evidence in the record of numerous studies concerning multiplex testing, widespread dissemination of multiplex information, and popular use of multiplex systems supports our conclusion. According to NIST, multiplex, which involves adding more than one set of PCR primers to the reaction in order to target multiple locations, is an ideal technique for DNA typing because the probability of identical alleles in two individuals decreases with an increase in the number of polymorphic loci examined. Butler, supra at http://www.cstl.nist.gov/biotech/strbase/multiplx.htm. The NIST website indicates that monoplex and multiplex STRs are used extensively in the forensic field, and the site lists over 900 published articles detailing the use of STRs in population studies, medical research and diagnosis, and in the forensic field. Indeed, the trial court acknowledged that one advantage to multiplexing is its ability to offer greater discrimination. The trial court also noted that multiplexing requires less material, fewer tests and thus is ideal in the forensic setting and saves time and money. In addition, because fewer tests are required, the risk of contaminating samples is reduced. While testing multiple loci in one test can be problematic because adding more than one set of PCR primers to a reaction may cause primers for one locus to complex with those of other loci, the reproducibility of test results under this process mitigates this risk. Furthermore, the numerous studies concerning multiplex testing and evidence in the record of widespread dissemination of multiplex information support its reliability. The record indicates that the prosecution submitted fourteen studies addressing the consistency and reliability of the PE kits and their forensic use. Because the majority of the studies were conducted in foreign countries and because they were published in a book that was not well-known, the trial court concluded that they were not sufficiently peer reviewed. The trial court similarly dismissed a study performed in the United States by a well-respected expert in the field, and another validation study included by PE in its user's manual. The record also indicates that information about the multiplex method had been widely disseminated through numerous poster sessions and symposia. Although the trial court found that this failed to establish validation under strict TWGDAM guidelines and thus indicated no general acceptance under Frye, we reach a different conclusion under CRE 702. We find that the evidence in the record of numerous studies concerning multiplex, widespread dissemination of multiplex information, and popular use of multiplex systems indicates that multiplex systems are reliable under CRE 702. The trial court acknowledged that triplexing, which is a form of multiplexing, is generally accepted. However, it nonetheless held that the sixplex and nineplex systems at issue in this case were not sufficiently validated or peer reviewed, and thus evidence derived from their use was inadmissible. We disagree. As a preliminary matter, we disapprove of the trial court's distinction between the sixplex and nineplex systems at issue in the present case and other multiplex systems not at issue here that have been widely accepted by the scientific community. [19] Such a fine distinction is not required under CRE 702's liberal standard for admissibility. See Daubert, 509 U.S. at 594, 113 S.Ct. 2786 (The inquiry envisioned by Rule 702 is, we emphasize, a flexible one.); Bonds, 12 F.3d at 565 (holding that a Rule 702 inquiry is a flexible and more lenient test that favors the admission of any scientifically valid expert testimony). We also conclude that questions as to the reliability of the particular type of multiplex kit go to the weight of the evidence, rather than its admissibility. State v. Russell, 125 Wash.2d 24, 882 P.2d 747, 768 (1994) (holding that general acceptance under Frye of PCR kit was not required because the kit is simply one tool for carrying out generally accepted PCR methodology); see also Hicks, 103 F.3d at 848 (holding that challenges to laboratory protocols used in PCR testing do not weigh against the admissibility of PCR); Shea, 957 F.Supp. at 340 (concluding that concerns about handling and quality control procedures affect the weight that should be given to evidence, rather than its admissibility). Finally, we are persuaded that the multiplex systems at issue in this case are sufficiently reliable by their acceptance by several other courts that have considered the issue. Although our research reveals no appellate court decisions discussing the admissibility of DNA evidence derived from a multiplex system, the parties have submitted copies of several trial court rulings from other jurisdictions that have admitted DNA evidence derived from the very multiplex STR systems at issue here. State v. Lynch, No. CR 98-11390 (Ariz.Super.Ct. Aug. 17, 1999) (ruling that Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits were generally accepted under Frye ); State v. Hill, No. 232982 (Cal.Super.Ct. Apr. 18, 2000) (ruling that issue as to whether PE kit is generally accepted goes to weight, not admissibility and concluding that evidence derived from such kit is admissible under Frye ); State v. Bertsch, No. 94F07255 (Cal.Super.Ct. Oct. 20, 1999) (ruling that PE multiplex kits were admissible under Frye's general acceptance test); Commonwealth v. Gaynor, No. 98-0965-0966 (Mass.Super.Ct. Apr. 13, 2000) (ruling that evidence derived from Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits was admissible under Daubert ); State v. Dishmon, No. 99047345 (Minn.Dist. Ct. Mar. 2, 2000) (ruling that evidence derived from Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits was admissible under Frye ). For example, a Minnesota District Court found recently in State v. Dishmon that evidence obtained using the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits was admissible. Dishmon, No. 99047345, slip op. at 13. That court concluded that because PCR STR typing met the Frye test, general acceptance of the specific kits used was not required. Id. at 8. In the alternative, the court held that evidence presented in that case indicated that the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits were generally accepted. Id. at 9. Similarly, a Massachusetts court held recently that evidence derived from the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits was reliable under Daubert. Gaynor, No. 98-0965-0966, slip op. at 2. That court reasoned, Because the more recent testing consists of essentially a refinement in the STR system of analysis, which has been determined to be generally accepted in the scientific community, I find the recent test results to be reliable. Id. The court also determined that specific concerns about the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits themselves were issues of weight, rather than admissibility. Id. at 5. We are aware of only one trial court that has found the evidence derived from the Profiler Plus and Cofiler kits to be inadmissible. The Vermont District Court held in State v. Pfenning that evidence derived from the Profiler Plus kit was inadmissible because the kit had not been sufficiently validated or subjected to peer review under Daubert. No 57-4-96 (Vt.Dist.Ct. Apr. 6, 2000). Because we have determined that compliance with the Daubert factors is not determinative as to the question of admissibility, we are not persuaded by Pfenning because its analysis focuses on a particular factor under Daubert, holding that the absence of that factor defeats admissibility. See Kumho, 526 U.S. at 151, 119 S.Ct. 1167 (noting that, It might not be surprising in a particular case ... that a claim made by a witness has never been the subject of peer review ....); Heller v. Shaw Indus., Inc., 167 F.3d 146, 155 (3d Cir.1999) (holding that, given the liberal thrust of the rules of evidence and the flexible nature of the Daubert inquiry, published studies on general causation are not required for admission of a medical expert's testimony). Thus, after considering the totality of the circumstances in this case, we conclude that the evidence derived from the PE sixplex and nineplex STR systems is admissible under CRE 702 because (1) multiplex systems are generally reliable; (2) questions as to the reliability of a specific type of multiplex kit go to the weight of the evidence, rather than its admissibility; and (3) the specific multiplex kits used in this case have been deemed reliable by other courts. We also find that the probative value of the evidence derived from the kits used is not substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, undue delay, waste of time, or needless presentation of cumulative evidence. Therefore, the evidence at issue here meets the requirements of CRE 403 and should be admitted. Accordingly, we make our rule to show cause absolute and order the trial court to vacate its order barring such evidence.