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NYC tests DNA recovered from gun crime scenes faster than any other big city, officials say
By
Samantha Max
Published Jun 26, 2023
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Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist
By
Samantha Max
Published Jun 26, 2023
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New York City is testing DNA connected to gun crimes faster than any other big city in the country, Chief Medical Examiner Jason Graham said Monday.
Experts have found that rapidly linking someone to a gun through DNA evidence can lead to their arrest before they shoot someone else. And when suspects’ DNA doesn’t match the crime scene evidence, faster testing can help to clear them of wrongdoing sooner.
“Quicker turnaround times will also hasten answers to victims, families and communities who are affected by gun violence,” Graham said.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has cut the turnaround time in half since it launched a new unit to analyze firearm-related evidence last year, from less than 60 days to under 30 days. In May, scientists completed tests in 28 days.
While the city pledged to test DNA on all firearms recovered by police years ago, until recently forensic scientists in the medical examiner’s office were juggling gun evidence along with various other kinds of cases. Mayor Eric Adams announced last June that the medical examiner’s office was in the process of hiring 24 analysts for a $2.5 million unit focused solely on evidence related to gun crimes.
The unit does not just test guns — Graham said recovered firearms only account for about 15-20% of the evidence they analyze. Scientists also test any other evidence police recover that’s connected to a gun crime, according to a spokesperson for the medical examiner’s office. The DNA is compared to local, state and national databases to check for potential matches.
Graham said the infusion of staff with a singular responsibility has allowed his office to streamline its process. He said his office has also upgraded its lab equipment to help speed up DNA tests.
Adams, who campaigned on promises to reduce gun violence and has made it a central goal of his administration, said the unit has made it easier to “convict the guilty and exonerate the innocent.”
“We are saying to all those who commit gun crimes: the evidence doesn’t lie,” he said. “Science is coming for you faster than ever.”
The NYPD has seized more than 10,000 guns since Adams and outgoing Commissioner Keechant Sewell were inaugurated in January 2022. NYPD Deputy Chief of the Forensic Investigation Division Brian McGee said 3,300 guns have come through the lab since the new unit was formed.
NYPD data show the number of shooting incidents and victims have both decreased about 25% compared to this time last year. Homicides are down about 10%, following a nationwide trend.
“There’s always more work to do, but the momentum we are seeing is very encouraging,” said First Deputy Commissioner Edward Caban.
Juneteenth was the deadliest day so far this year, with at least five people killed across the city. Gun violence tends to spike during the summer months, when school is out and temperatures rise.
Tagged
public safety
manhattan
eric adams
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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