United States v. Davis

602 F. Supp. 2d 658 (D. Md. 2009)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Jason Schwindler, an armored car employee, picked up a bank deposit and took it to a nearby BB&T bank. Schwindler walked up to the bank entrance, and two gunmen exited a Jeep Cherokee and began shooting at Schwindler, killing him. When their escape in the Jeep was thwarted by the armored truck driver, the assailants carjacked a bank customer and fled in her vehicle. The carjacked vehicle was later recovered. D was indicted for federal crimes relating to the robbery and murder of Jason Schwinder, and P gave notice of its intent to seek the death penalty. D filed a motion to Exclude DNA Test Results and Request for Daubert Hearing. P filed the affidavit of Meredith Kitey, the former DNA Laboratory Manager, Technical Leader and CODIS Administrator for the Prince George's Police Department. Numerous items were recovered, including a baseball cap worn by one of the shooters, two firearms, and steering wheel covers from the Jeep Cherokee and a Pontiac Grand Am that were used by the suspects in the commission of the offense. They were swabbed and analyzed for DNA. The DNA profiles of the major contributor to the DNA found in the ball cap and on the trigger and grip of the recovered firearms were entered into the CODIS database. There was a 'hit' on the DNA recovered from the ball cap; it was D's. Pursuant to a search warrant, a DNA sample was taken from D and compared to the items recovered from the crime scene. The DNA was tested under PCR/STR 2 typing. DNA from more than one individual was obtained from the ballcap. The major component of the profile matches the known profile of D. To a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, in the absence of an identical twin, D is the source of this DNA. The minor types remain unassigned. They also tested samples from the trigger grips from the two guns recovered but they were both inconclusive. They also tested DNA from the steering wheel of the Jeep Cherokee. The profile was consistent with the combined profiles of Kwang Yeung Yan and D. The DNA profile obtained from this item is approximate: That DNA was 3.5 quadrillion times more likely to be a mixture of DNA from Kwang Yeung Yan and D than a mixture of Kwang Yeung Yan and an unknown individual in the Caucasian population. To a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, in the absence of an identical twin, D is the source of this DNA. The items listed above were not fully consumed during the course of analysis. Additional portions are available for independent testing. These were what are called “cold hits” because D had not been a suspect or even linked to the crime prior to the matches. P submitted an affidavit from the FBI that such source attributions were used only when the probability of a random match was less than 1 part in 300 billion. D argues that there is no accepted methodology for the determination of the probability that a cold match was random. Three different methods were used for the calculation, and each was statistically reliable, but each one answered a distinct question. D reasons that because the scientific community cannot agree as to which methodology should be used for cold hits, the evidence should be excluded. D also claimed the source attribution statement was inadmissible.