NEW YORK – The New York City medical examiner’s office confirmed Friday that it is reviewing hundreds of rape cases for possible errors in DNA analysis.
Officials said it appears so far that the testing in the vast majority of the cases was valid. But in one instance, the review uncovered evidence that resulted in an indictment last year accusing a man of raping a minor more than a decade ago in Brooklyn.
Local politicians responded to news of the mishandled sex crimes evidence, first reported in The New York Times, by saying it suggests more victims may have been denied justice. The City Council announced it would hold an oversight hearing later this month.
“We cannot allow these women to wonder if their attacker remains free or to go one more day without knowing justice was served in their case,” City Council Speaker Christine Quinn said in a statement.
The review began after the medical examiner’s office discovered errors by an unidentified laboratory technician, who was hired in 2001 and resigned in 2011, office spokeswoman Ellen Borakove said.