Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney and the sister of Gilgo Beach murder victim Maureen Brainard-Barnes are scheduled to testify Friday at a New York State hearing examining advanced DNA technology that played a role in the Gilgo Beach investigation.
The hearing will be livestreamed beginning at 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9. Members of the public can watch the proceedings on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/live/SCV4dkDwL50.
Tierney and Melissa “Missy” Cann will appear before the New York State Commission on Forensic Science and its DNA Subcommittee during a joint public hearing in Albany focused on next-generation sequencing, or NGS, and its potential use to support investigative genetic genealogy in public forensic laboratories.
The hearing is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, at the Alfred E. Smith Building in Albany and is expected to be livestreamed.
The technology can be used to develop DNA profiles from degraded or low-quantity genetic material, potentially allowing investigators to pursue leads in cases where traditional DNA testing has been limited.
In written material submitted ahead of the hearing, Tierney argued for expanding the use of NGS technology in New York’s public forensic laboratories. He said traditional short tandem repeat, or STR, DNA analysis has limitations when investigators are dealing with highly degraded or small amounts of DNA, conditions often encountered in cold cases.
Tierney pointed to the Gilgo Beach homicide investigation as an example of the technology’s use. He said NGS helped investigators identify Rex Heuermann and was also used in investigative genetic genealogy that helped identify previously unidentified Gilgo Beach victims Valerie Mack and Karen Vergata.
Tierney wrote that private forensic laboratories have already received accreditation to perform NGS testing in criminal casework and argued that New York should allow its public laboratories to use the technology under the state’s forensic oversight system.
Friday’s hearing is intended to gather information about the technology and its potential use in accredited public forensic laboratories. The published agenda lists testimony from speakers but does not indicate that the Commission or DNA Subcommittee will vote on a policy change during the hearing.
The Commission on Forensic Science establishes standards and accreditation requirements for public forensic laboratories in New York. Its DNA Subcommittee evaluates forensic DNA methodologies and makes recommendations involving scientific standards, quality assurance and laboratory accreditation.
Cann’s participation will bring a victim-family perspective to the hearing. Her sister, Brainard-Barnes, was one of the four women whose remains were discovered near Gilgo Beach in December 2010, discoveries that led to the wider investigation along Ocean Parkway.
The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said the hearing will also examine how next-generation sequencing has helped with the identification of human remains in other cold cases.
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