Defendant in murder is granted 'right to check source code for DNA testing software used by police'

Technologies such as fingerprint matching systems and DNA testing software are essential to improving the accuracy and speed of law enforcement investigations. On the other hand, a court in New Jersey, USA, said, 'Check the source code of DNA testing software,' said a court in New Jersey, USA, said that defendants arrested and charged by law enforcement agencies should also be granted the right to question the technology used in the investigation. He ruled that the 'right to do' lies with the accused in the murder case.

A-4207-19T4 --STATE OF NEW JERSEY VS. COREY PICKETT (17-07-0470, HUDSON COUNTY AND STATE WIDE) .pdf
(PDF file) https://www.eff.org/files/2021/02/03/decision_appdiv_232021.pdf

No Secret Evidence in Our Courts | Electronic Frontier Foundation
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2021/02/no-secret-evidence-our-courts

Accused murderer wins right to check source code of DNA testing kit used by police • The Register
https://www.theregister.com/2021/02/04/dna_testing_software/

On April 16, 2017, a teenage man in a car was shot dead in a car in Jersey City , New Jersey's second largest city. Corey Picket, 21, who was arrested in the case at the time, was accused of murder, but Picket's lawyers claimed that he 'wants to examine the source code of the software used in the investigation to assess its credibility.' I am.

The lawyers want to investigate a DNA testing tool called True Allele developed by American software developer Cybergenetics. TrueAllele is software that can analyze DNA using statistical methods, and can accurately identify DNA even in cases where conventional testing methods cannot demonstrate high accuracy, such as samples containing DNA from multiple people. It has been with.

TrueAllele was also used to analyze genetic samples found in firearms used in murders in the Jersey City case, and the results of this analysis provided evidence linking pickets to crime. During a hearing on the case, lawyers offered to analyze the True Allele source code, but Cybergenetics refused, saying it could reveal secrets to competitors. Cybergenetics also states that the software source code is a corporate secret, and it takes more than eight years to analyze the 170,000 lines of source code written in MATLAB in detail.

Eventually, Cybergenetics allowed lawyers to investigate the source code under a non-disclosure agreement stating that they would 'pay a $ 1 million fine in the event of a source code leak.' However, the lawyers were unable to reach an agreement, claiming that a contract with strict penalties would prevent the participation of experts in source code analysis.

The defense team's offer was rejected by the lower court, but the defense team appealed and the hearing was brought to the court of appeal. The lawyers cite cases of coding errors in DNA testing software such as STRmix in the past, and check the source code, saying that it is necessary to prove that software errors and hidden functions do not disadvantage the defendant. He requested that he recognize his rights.

As a result of the hearing, the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the defense, saying that the accused had the right to understand and challenge the software involved in the case. This will allow lawyers to analyze the TrueAllele source code and point out any issues.

Kit Walsh , a senior lawyer at the Electronic Frontier Foundation , welcomed the appeal's decision: 'No one should be imprisoned or executed on the basis of secret evidence that cannot be fairly evaluated for credibility. No, this ruling will help prevent such fraud. '