title: Acceptance of domestic cat mitochondrial DNA in a criminal proceeding.
abstract: Shed hair from domestic animals readily adheres to clothing and other contact items, providing a source of transfer evidence for criminal investigations. Mitochondrial DNA is often the only option for DNA analysis of shed hair. Human mitochondrial DNA analysis has been accepted in the US court system since 1996. The murder trial of the State of Missouri versus Henry L. Polk, Jr. represents the first legal proceeding where cat mitochondrial DNA analysis was introduced into evidence. The mitochondrial DNA evidence was initially considered inadmissible due to concerns about the cat dataset and the scientific acceptance of the marker. Those concerns were subsequently addressed, and the evidence was deemed admissible. This report reviews the case in regards to the cat biological evidence and its ultimate admission as generally accepted and reliable. Expansion and saturation analysis of the cat mitochondrial DNA control region dataset supported the initial interpretation of the evidence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California - Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, United States. Electronic address: lalyons@ucdavis.edu.
authors.forename: Leslie A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Lyons
authors.affiliation: Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California - Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, United States; Forensics Unit, Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California - Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Grahn
authors.affiliation: Forensics Unit, Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California - Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Teri J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Kun
authors.affiliation: Kansas City Police Crime Laboratory, 6633 Troost Avenue, Kansas City, MO 64131, United States.
authors.forename: Linda R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Netzel
authors.affiliation: Forensics Unit, Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California - Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Elizabeth E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Wictum
authors.affiliation: Zoogen Services, 1046 Olive Drive Suite 1, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Joy L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Halverson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats / Q000235:genetics*; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D044707:Forensic Sciences / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006197:Hair / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006708:Homicide / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D008923:Missouri; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial
keywords: Admissibility; Control region; Feline; Felis silvestris catus; Forensic science; Hair
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