The Johnia Berry Act: State Representative Jason Mumpower's Words

The Tennessean.com
Monday, 04/02/07

Strengthen the ability to solve more crimes

By STATE REP. JASON MUMPOWER

Johnia Berry had just graduated from East Tennessee State University and was preparing for graduate school at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. She was ambitious, hoping to eventually earn a doctorate in psychology while simultaneously planning her wedding. But in the early morning hours of Dec. 6, 2004, an unknown assailant broke into Johnia's apartment and brutally killed her, ending many hopes and dreams that will never be realized. Now, nearly two years later, her killer is still on the loose.

Hopefully, the "Johnia Berry Act" will work to rectify this tragic situation and others like it. The act will require DNA to be collected upon certain violent felony arrests, and these samples will then be added to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's DNA database. The primary purpose of this legislation is to strengthen our ability to solve crimes and take violent offenders off the streets. A simple swab is all it takes. Current law already requires that anyone convicted of a felony provide a blood sample so that TBI can extract the person's genetic code. This DNA test will be done by simply swabbing the inside of the person's mouth at the cheek, actually making it less physically intrusive than those tests done in the past. Implementing this measure will also improve and expand upon the state's current DNA database, which the TBI believes could really make a difference in bringing those guilty of violent crimes to justice.

Seven states — California, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Mexico, Texas and Virginia — already have this law on the books, and the results are impressive. For example, after Virginia passed the legislation, 288 crimes were immediately solved as a result. Not only were the victims and their families finally able to receive the justice they deserved, but numerous violent offenders were taken off the streets, potentially preventing other heartbreaking stories like Johnia's.

Opponents of the legislation argue that such databases violate the rights of those who supply their DNA samples. But the collecting of samples will also protect the innocent by exonerating them. And if a person is cleared of the crime, or subsequently found "not guilty," the DNA sample is destroyed.

DNA sampling has changed the face of solving crimes. For decades, police had to rely on fingerprint techniques to link suspects to crimes. Fingerprint analysis can be very subjective, while DNA sampling is virtually foolproof. The risk of a coincidental DNA match is 1 in 100 billion. If this legislation takes just one violent offender off the streets, that's one less Johnia Berry whose family has to suffer such a tragic loss. However, the positive effects will likely be far greater. Further, while the rights of the accused should and will be protected, the victims of heinous crimes and their families deserve the closure that comes with seeing a murderer brought to justice. We have a responsibility to protect our citizens from violent crime, and with this legislation, we will have the ability to do so.