Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • NEWS

US serial killer case opens door to using cutting-edge DNA data in courts

New York trial could set a legal precedent by admitting findings from whole-genome sequencing as evidence.
By
  1. Katherine Bourzac

A judge in New York rejected a request on 23 September to disqualify the use of cutting-edge DNA sequencing as evidence in a case against an alleged serial killer. The ruling paves the way for a type of DNA analysis known as whole-genome sequencing — used to decipher ancient DNA in fossilized remains, for example — to be admitted as evidence in US criminal trials.

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Nature 646, 263-264 (2025)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-03102-8

Subjects

Latest on:

Nature Careers

Jobs

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing

Search

Advanced search

Quick links