Sorrell supports DNA testing of Vermont felons

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(Host) Attorney General William Sorrell says he thinks people convicted of serious crimes in Vermont should be required to submit to a DNA test.

Speaking Thursday night on VPR’s Switchboard program Sorrell says he’s satisfied a Vermont DNA registry would not run afoul of privacy concerns.

(Sorrell) “These are not suspects, these are people that have been convicted of serious felonies. And I think that when you get convicted of a serious felony, there are certain ramifications that come from that and one of them ought to be that the government ought to be able to have your DNA profile on file. So if you’ve been involved in any other criminal activities in the past, or in the future that you’ll be readily identified.”

(Host) Sorrell says a DNA registry in California has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of old criminal cases being solved. Establishing a similar system in Vermont would require the approval of the Legislature.

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