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• New law will force police departments to test sexual assault kits Play Video

  March 8, 2013 1:20 AM

  U.S. Senator Michael Bennett's SAFER Act was signed into law Thursday. The SAFER Act would help reduce the national backlog of rape kits by helping state and local governments conduct audits in law enforcement storage facilities and increasing available resources for crime labs to process those kits. In recent... more »

• 5 Uncovers: Sexual assault kits not being tested

  February 13, 2013 12:48 PM

  News 5 uncovers hundreds of sexual assault kits collected are not being sent off for testing. "We assume evidence is being submitted for testing after a victim comes to law enforcement and goes through the additional traumatic experience of having the evidence collected," House District 43 Representative Frank McNulty... more »

• Suppliers, grocers turning to DNA testing on meat

  January 30, 2013 2:03 PM

  DUBLIN (AP) - Ireland's surprise discovery this month of horsemeat traces in factory-produced burgers is boosting business for one trade: Forensics labs that use DNA fingerprinting to tell you what's on your plate. Horsemeat, which costs a fraction of beef, might not be bad for you to eat but it's... more »

• Man goes on trial in 1967 death of Ohio schoolgirl

  August 11, 2011 1:42 PM

  TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) - Prosecutors in Ohio say DNA evidence collected four decades ago links a man to the 1967 killing of a 14-year-old girl. Testimony began Thursday in the murder trial of 75-year-old Robert Bowman. Investigators think he kept the girl captive in his basement for as long... more »

• FBI: DNA test did not match DB Cooper suspect

  August 8, 2011 8:43 PM

  OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - The FBI says DNA found on the tie of hijacker D.B. Cooper does not match a new suspect in the case. Special Agent Fred Gutt cautioned that the test does not necessarily rule out the deceased suspect because investigators do not know whether DNA on... more »

• GJ Police doubt Bundy DNA will solve 1975 case

  August 6, 2011 3:15 PM

  GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) - Police say they're doubtful that a recent discovery of the complete DNA profile of serial killer Ted Bundy will help solve the disappearance of a Grand Junction woman 36 years ago. Authorities know that Bundy was in Grand Junction that spring thanks to a... more »

• DNA evidence used to ID pipe bomb suspect

  April 27, 2011 11:39 AM

  DENVER (AP) - A court document says DNA evidence from a homemade bomb at a Colorado shopping mall led investigators to identify the suspect as a convicted bank robber who had just been released from prison. A criminal complaint made public Wednesday says the evidence matched the DNA profile... more »

• Police, civil liberties group at odds over DNA law

  September 30, 2010 6:32 PM

  In Colorado, law enforcement can now collect DNA samples from people who are arrested for a felony. Katie's Law is named after a New Mexico college student who was murdered in 2003. Her parents believe if the killer's DNA had been collected during a previous arrest, he might have been... more »

• Colorado to begin collecting DNA from arrestees

  September 30, 2010 9:38 AM

  Colorado will begin collecting DNA from those arrested for felonies beginning Friday under a law that is expected to be challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union. DNA from those arrested for felonies will be collected through a cheek swab and sent to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for... more »

• Colorado Cold Case: suspect tied to 4 murders

  September 14, 2010 3:40 PM

  Colorado investigators say one suspect is responsible for two unsolved homicide cases involving four people in Aurora and Lakewood. Lakewood police say the Colorado Bureau of Investigation has connected the two homicide cases from 1984 through DNA evidence. Authorities plan to announce their findings during a Tuesday news conference.... more »

• Exercise counters DNA in obesity study

  September 1, 2010 1:45 PM

  Even if obesity is in your DNA, exercise can help. British researchers studied over 20,000 people, determining their genetic risk of obesity. Those who had the most genetic variants for obesity inherited from their parents, did have the highest Body Mass Index. But the at-risk people who were... more »

• FBI backlog is over 3,200 forensic DNA cases

  August 9, 2010 12:46 PM

  The Justice Department's inspector general says the FBI laboratory has a backlog of more than 3,200 forensic DNA cases. The IG says such backlogs can delay legal proceedings and prevent the timely capture of criminals. The backlog has grown 130 percent in a single year to 276 cases... more »

• Murder victim encased in concrete

  August 5, 2010 9:07 AM

  Police in Cocoa, Florida are investigating a gruesome murder after the discovery of a bizarre grave. They say college student Darice Knowles, 22, met her killer within days of arriving here from the Bahamas. According to a source who saw her body, Knowles was trapped inside a large lump... more »

• Accused child killer in court today

  August 4, 2010 9:47 AM

  Monique Lynch, accused stuffing a little girl's lifeless body into the crawl space of a Monument home, will face a judge in Colorado Springs for the first time today. Lynch waived her right to a video advisement last week. Today, she's expected to be formally charged with child abuse... more »

• Colorado inmate charged in cold case murder

  July 22, 2010 8:44 AM

  Prosecutors in California have charged a Colorado inmate with murdering a bar owner nearly four decades ago. Investigators say Roy Melanson, 73, fatally stabbed a Napa woman in July 1974, just two months before murdering another woman in Colorado. Melanson is serving a life sentence in the Colorado... more »

• WWII American remains from Saipan battle identified

  June 16, 2010 9:20 AM

  A researcher in Massachusetts says he has identified the remains of at least seven U.S. service members declared missing in action 66 years ago in the World War II Battle of Saipan. Retired Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Ted Darcy of Fall River, Massachusetts, says he expects to make about... more »

• FDA looks hard at DNA testing for hereditary diseases

  June 11, 2010 11:47 AM

  The Food and Drug Administration is issuing regulatory letters to five genetic test makers, the first sign that the government is cracking down on companies that claim to use DNA samples to predict inheritable diseases. The FDA letters notify each company that their tests are considered medical devices and... more »

• Colorado cold case murder solved by DNA

  June 11, 2010 8:33 AM

  Authorities say a 28-year-old unsolved murder of an elderly Longmont woman has been solved after recent DNA testing. Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said Tuesday that a recent DNA test tied John Agrue to the 1982 death of 94-year-old Orma Smith, a former librarian and teacher. Smith's body... more »

• Wrongly convicted man gets $5.9 million from Fort Collins

  June 8, 2010 5:45 PM

  The city of Fort Collins has approved a $5.9 million lawsuit by a man who served nearly 10 years in prison for murder before he was released based on DNA evidence. The settlement announced Tuesday brings to $10 million the amount Tim Masters has received from his lawsuit against... more »

• Researchers use DNA to fight breast cancer

  May 26, 2010 11:02 AM

  Swedish researchers say they have developed a DNA vaccine that restricts the supply of blood to tumors. The finding is important because in order for a cancer tumor to grow it must be able to stimulate the formation of new blood vessels. So far the vaccine has only... more »

• Researchers develop breast cancer vaccine

  May 26, 2010 11:00 AM

  Swedish researchers say they have developed a DNA vaccine that restricts the supply of blood to tumors. The finding is important because in order for a cancer tumor to grow it must be able to stimulate the formation of new blood vessels. So far the vaccine has only... more »

• Colorado inmate charged in cold case

  May 7, 2010 8:18 AM

  A Colorado inmate serving time on a drug conviction faces charges of sexually assaulting one woman and trying to assault another 16 years ago. Denver police and the district attorney said Thursday DNA evidence led them to 38-year-old Jody Smith. Smith is accused of trying to grab a woman... more »

• Dismembered body identified

  April 20, 2010 6:04 PM

  Investigators have now identified a body, found dismembered in a remote area of eastern El Paso County. The body was located at a camp ground, back on November 24. Authorities say the woman has been identified as 44-year-old Rebecca Magallanes, of Florence. They were able to make the identification... more »

• DNA helps crack cold case

  March 29, 2010 10:58 PM

  AURORA, Colo. (AP) - Aurora police say they have filed their first homicide cold case based on DNA evidence. Police said Monday they have identified 39-year-old Kevin Lewayne McKinney as a suspect in the 1998 death of Diane Juanita Caldwell, whose body was found in a field in the... more »

• Free ID event scheduled for Saturday

  March 18, 2010 5:22 PM

  It's something no parent wants to think about, but in rare cases it pays off. American Furniture Warehouse will host a free identification event for children Saturday. Those attending will get a fingerprint kit, a digital photograph, a home DNA kit and a child safety journal that, when filled out,... more »

• UPDATE: No justice 7 years after murder

  March 17, 2010 8:02 PM

  Through her tears Susie Wagner's pleading for people with information on her son's death to come forward. She tells News First 5 that she still can't drive by the murder scene without crying. She has a tough time in public places sometimes, wondering if the murderers, or accomplices, are... more »

• Newborn blood used in research angers parents

  February 9, 2010 12:02 PM

  A critical safety net for babies - that heelprick of blood taken from every newborn in the U.S. - is facing an ethics attack. After those tiny blood spots are tested for a list of devastating diseases, some states are storing them for years. Scientists consider the leftover samples... more »

• FBI delves into DMV photos in search for fugitives

  October 13, 2009 10:54 AM

  In its search for fugitives, the FBI has begun using facial-recognition technology on millions of motorists, comparing driver's license photos with pictures of convicts in a high-tech analysis of chin widths and nose sizes. The project in North Carolina has already helped nab at least one suspect. Agents are... more »

• DNA pioneer appeals for freethinking scientists

  September 10, 2009 9:45 AM

  The geneticist who discovered DNA fingerprinting says scientists must be allowed to conduct research driven by nothing but curiosity. Alec Jeffreys realized 25 years ago Thursday that almost all humans have unique signatures of genetic material. The discovery has been used to solve thousands of crimes and to settle countless... more »