DNA found at Occupy Wall Street protest linked to unsolved murder

[spotbird]

Source: Yahoo News

Investigators in New York say they may have stumbled into a break in the unsolved murder case of Sarah Fox, a Juilliard student who was dead in a Manhattan park in 2004.

...


DNA samples collected from a chain left behind a March 28 protest in Brooklyn matches the DNA found on a pink CD player found near Fox's body, the law enforcement official told the New York Post.

According to the Associated Press, the DNA on the chain--used by activists to hold a subway's emergency exit open--has not been matched to any one person at the protest, and another law enforcement source told the Post that while "it's an important piece of evidence" police are "a long way from solving the case."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/occupy-wall-street-dna-unsolved-murder-132043253.html

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They tested the chain for DNA? There are mass murders in New York with DNA untested.

[crim son]

1. That was my first thought.

Why would they test the chain? Odd.

[Broderick]

9. highly unusual I think

But perhaps it will be a good thing in the end so they can catch the person.

[yardwork]

2. Let's blame this seven year old murder on Occupy! That's the ticket!

[silvershadow]

31. and that was my first thought

My second thought was "Why on earth are they just randomly testing things"? DNA testing is still expensive, and I'm sure the labs are very busy. They had the money and time for a totally random test? My conclusion is "Lets blame this 7 year old murder on Occupy". lol For this I (and likely you as well) might be labeled as a conspiracy theorist. PS: For the record, I am neither an occupier nor a conspiracy theorist. I am a realist with my eyes wide open.)

[notundecided]

38. NYPD Says

DNA match from lab tech who was present at both events

[happyslug]

39. Do you have a cite? Sounds like contamination on BOTH scenes.

i.e. the same lab technician did the same test and it was his or her DNA that was traced to both scenes.

Found a Cite, it is clearly Police Error, i.e. Contamination error:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dna-links-occupy-wall-street-protest-slain-julliard/story?id=16753258

[Arkansas Granny]

3. I must be missing something here. Why would they test the chain? That's just bizarre.

[spotbird]

4. Why indeed.

Maybe to tarnish the movement? Maybe to find an excuse to test more protester DNA?

It seems to me that there would be surveillance cameras recording the subway incident. Why hasn't a picture of the alleged perpetrator released?

edit:
Message below shows the supposed photo.

[Cracklin Charlie]

12. Occupy Autumn?

Are they trying to get out ahead of something that will happen soon?

I think I read here about a busy autumn for Occupy.

[2pooped2pop]

26. bingo

There is no other reason that a chain would have been dna tested. If something on that chain had matching dna, it was planted.

scared little piggies go we we we, all the way home

[Smarmie Doofus]

13. My guess is to try to tie anyone connected w. OWS.....

... to any crime committed anywhere at any time in recorded history.

[dipsydoodle]

16. It doesn't state the reason the chain was tested

which may be wholly unrelated to Occupy and any assumption it was so is without reasonable foundation.

[msanthrope]

22. Apparently, the cops had no other leads since the vandals wore

masks and gloves. Not saying I beleive it....but that's the explanation offered.

[2pooped2pop]

27. seems that if they wore masks and gloves

they would have had little hope for dna on it. I mean dna? Fingerprint checking maybe, dna? Must have been big splotches of blood on that thing. I mean dna testing for a vandalism? What the fuck are they doing wasting the money like that?

Nope, this is all bs.

[Enrique]

5. NY Post lol

http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/FAJ6coJ1eWuyAIu.n5.CFA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTMxMA--/

[spotbird]

6. Does that mean the story is false?

I really don't know, did the police make the claim? Or is it fiction?

If the police did test the chain, we should all be worried.

[Huey P. Long]

28. I am telling you, OWS did 9/11!

[Smarmie Doofus]

14. I knew it was linked to either UFT or OWS.

The NYC teachers' union is the only thing that Murdoch hates more than OWS.

[LiberalFighter]

7. NY's Finest at it again.

What are the odds that the "evidence" was planted by them?

What are the odds that NYC has a higher rate of corruption within their police department?

[PatrynXX]

25. lemme guess

New York, Soviet Union


where things are more corrupt that Moscow , Russia

[bluedigger]

8. How about some DNA testing of fraudulent mortgage documentation?

It might be interesting to see whose hands the papers passed through.

[judesedit]

10. The chain was found at the scene and used. That DNA's been there for 8 years and noone bothered

What a bunch of asshole puppets for the GOP. They should be ashamed of themselves....and their shoddy police work 8 years ago.

[msanthrope]

21. What makes you think the Fox DNA wasn't tested and logged 8 years ago?

Seems like it was, and when this chain was tested, it popped.

[tkmorris]

30. So why would the chain have been tested?

[Roy Rolling]

11. Arrest!

Arrest that chain immediately!

[4lbs]

15. I don't think there's any way to determine when the DNA was left on the chain.

It could have been put there 3 years ago, BEFORE OWS.

Also, what do they mean by a "sample" of DNA?

Hair with follicle root?

Saliva?

Blood?

Skin?

Semen? (uggh)

[Ian David]

20. Masturbating on the chain might discourage the cops from touching it to remove it. n/t

[Huey P. Long]

17. Yep, and OWS did 9/11! ...oh no, that was the PNAC boys, nevermind.

[LynneSin]

18. Really?

For all we know that chain could have been bought at a flea market or thrift shop. That doesn't mean someone there actually committed the murder.

And finally it could have been a setup too.

[msanthrope]

24. The dna at the scene may not be from the murderer eiher, since it wasn't

Found on the body.

[msanthrope]

19. Shake a tree....

I wonder if it's Dimitry Shineman (sp) after all.

[joshcryer]

23. There are over 10 million people in NDIS. Arrestee / offender DNA is super cheap to do.

You only need a few hundred megabases of a DNA sample to give you a high confidence of matching a suspect (at the bare minimum they let you call in the suspect and do a much more thorough analysis on them).

The costs are ridiculously low: http://www.genome.gov/sequencingcosts/

We're talking dollars to put people into the databases... which is kind of terrifying.

The cost and backlog is in analyzing the rape kits or murder scenes and finding good DNA samples, ie, casework: http://nij.gov/nij/topics/forensics/lab-operations/evidence-backlogs/welcome.htm

They're trying to reduce the backlog with grants and whatnot: http://www.dna.gov/funding/backlog-reduction/

Now, I know that this is different, that they found DNA on a chain that they found at the scene of a crime, but I'd bet dollars to donuts they're using the simplified method here, it's not an extensive test, they're just checking base pair comparisons to do profiling of OWS activists or others. What's important though is that I highly doubt a CODIS style test would ever hold up in court. They can never use that DNA to say "this person was at OWS." But it makes for a good headline.

[cstanleytech]

29. Next they will begin testing public toilets for DNA. Remember to flush people!!!

[Generic Other]

32. meant to scare Occupy women

A serial rapist/murderer might be in their midst.

[They_Live]

33. "this is the Zodiac speaking..."

or it could tie to Jack the Ripper!

[HotRodTuna]

34. I love the total lack of interest in solving a random and brutal murder

All the energy is instead focused on defending Occupy. Guess what, Occupy attracted anarchists etc, one of whom apparently left some DNA on a chain he set up to let people steal subway rides.

But hey, let's not worry about some murdered young woman, who gives a crap about her. Let's use this as an opportunity to trash the GOP. Because I'm sure they're behind it.

I thought people here had a little more compassion.

[randome]

37. People who use a verb as a noun to rail against the System...

...do not have the compassion one might think. Incredible, isn't it?

[myrna minx]

41. Some only come to DU to disparage the Occupy movement with wide broad brushes.

Incredible, isn't it?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=163984

[myrna minx]

44. Here's a direct link about DNA cross contamination - grammar/compassion observations aside.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dna-links-occupy-wall-street-protest-slain-julliard/story?id=16753258#.T_4jaBwwJf4

[notundecided]

42. DNA from lab tech at both sites as per NYPD

[myrna minx]

43. Hey, how about you follow the evidence, instead of speculating and believing the tabloids?

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dna-links-occupy-wall-street-protest-slain-julliard/story?id=16753258#.T_4WihwwJf4

[HotRodTuna]

47. Fair enough

[closeupready]

35. Oh bullshit.

This is such nonsense. We aren't all unthinking zombies.

[Squinch]

36. The original story seems to have come from the NY Post. I smell a Rupert Murdoch snipe hunt.

[happyslug]

40. NY POlice are now saying it is probably cross contamination.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dna-links-occupy-wall-street-protest-slain-julliard/story?id=16753258

[Squinch]

45. And didn't we see that coming from a mile away?

[joshcryer]

46. lawl, wanna bet now all techs will have to have their DNS in CODIS?

It won't happen right away but just you watch and see.

CODIS is a terrifying implement of the state.

Someone joked about flushing the toilet, and it's not far from the truth, they're going to be doing DNA analysis on every drop of sweat in due course. The cost for DNA testing is dropping like a rock.

[proverbialwisdom]

48. Why don't you change the thread headline to reflect the latest reporting?