DNA profile leads to criminal law charge

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- Victims of unsolved sexual assault cases could benefit the most from a system that lets prosecutors file charges based only on DNA evidence. <br><br>Here's how it works: <br><br>Oklahoma

Friday, January 16th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- Victims of unsolved sexual assault cases could benefit the most from a system that lets prosecutors file charges based only on DNA evidence.

Here's how it works:

Oklahoma County District Attorney Wes Lane files a criminal charge, for example DNA Profile One, along with three lines of genetic code.

Then, the DNA is compared with other genetic samples in state and national databases. If there's a match, a name is put with the DNA and the charge.

The Oklahoma system is modeled on a Wisconsin setup, in place since 1999.

The Wisconsin Court of Criminal Appeals has upheld one of three convictions based on the so-called John Doe charges.

In the first DNA-based charges in Oklahoma County, sodomy, rape, kidnapping and lewd acts with a child under 16 were alleged.