Bloodstained Dollar Bill Leads to Charges

[crimeshot1]

Bloodstained Dollar Bill Leads to Charges


BRIGHAM CITY, Utah (July 1) - DNA recovered from a bloodstained dollar bill led to murder and robbery charges against a prison inmate in the slaying of a convenience store clerk 21 years ago.

"It's like giving birth to a baby," said Box Elder County sheriff's Detective Scott Cosgrove, who has worked on the case for 10 years.

"It's inside for so long, and finally it's out, and I'm really happy," he said Thursday.

Glenn Howard Griffin, an inmate at a federal prison in California, was charged Thursday with capital murder and aggravated robbery. DNA tests implicated him in the slaying of Bradley Perry in May 1984, according to court documents.

Perry, 22, was bludgeoned and stabbed to death while working the overnight shift at a convenience store. An undisclosed amount of money was taken from the cash register.

Immediately after the slaying, a man pretending to work at the store, apparently the robber or one of the robbers, had given a bloodstained dollar bill to two customers. Last month, the Utah Crime Lab reported that the Griffin's DNA matched that of blood on the bill.

Cosgrove said the investigation remains active.

"We're looking at possibly other people that may be tied to this case," he said. "We're not excluding the others that we've looked at in the past."

A sample of Griffin's DNA had been taken when he entered federal prison in California in 2004 after pleading guilty to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. Court records show he was previously convicted of aggravated burglary and illegal possession of a controlled substance.

The victim's mother, Claudia Perry, said it was comforting to know someone is going to held accountable.

"We thought it might never come," she said. "What else could you think after 21 years? You hope, but you don't know."

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[TruthIsStranger]

This seems a very, very dangerous precedent. I know I'm going to take flack over this, but hear me out. Involuntary DNA recorded in the penal system and then checked against all previously unsolved crimes is unconstitutional. There should certainly be some sort of protection maybe even falling under the fifth ammendment against self-incrimination.

Plus, there is no time stamp on DNA. How many times have you inadvertantly transferred your DNA to something, especially money?????? The idea is could the following scenerio reasonably happen? How often does money change hands?

Think about it, you cut yourself bleed on the pocket holding the money. Then use that dollar to buy a soda. That dollar is then used as the "drawer" money (part of the money that is kept in a bag with which to make change at any store). Then that dollar is stolen as part of a robbery months maybe years later, then recovered. Thus, your DNA is on the bill YOU ARE THE ROBBER, DNA PROVES IT.

DNA is an incredibly useful tool, but it needs to be used IN CONTEXT with other evidence to provide a conclusion. There is no way of ever knowing WHEN DNA is transferred, proper evidence is the only way to set an accurate time frame.

[crimeshot1]

TIS, you have stated an excellent point. That would not even come close to being an accurate "proof" of guilt.