The Five Demands

Spotlight on Massereene DNA analysis (UTV)
Allowing DNA analysis by a US expert as evidence in the murder trial of two men accused of shooting two soldiers in 2009 would be a first in the UK and Ireland, the court has heard.
Dr Mark Perlin has testified that DNA found in the Massereene getaway car was 5.91 trillion times more likely to be Colin Duffy’s than someone else’s, while another sample was 6.01 billion times more likely to belong to Brian Shivers than another person.
But on Thursday, no-jury judge Mr Justice Hart heard that Dr Perlin’s analysis technique has never once been admitted as evidence in a UK or Irish court – only in a small number of cases in the US and that it had been refused once in England.
A lawyer for one of the accused added that it is also not yet trusted by the broad scientific community, although the man who invented the technique is robustly defending its use.
“It may well be your system may turn out to be the best thing since sliced bread but, within the scientific community, the jury is out,” Barry McDonald QC, representing Duffy, said.
But Dr Perlin insisted the system had been rigorously validated – something he said had not been done with traditional methods.
“Our system is operating in the real world solving difficult, challenging data that people simply despair of being able to analyse,” he said.
Taking the witness stand for a second day, Dr Perlin also denied that he had a financial motive for the data produced by his patented technique being accepted by the court.
The expert had been due to give further evidence on findings relating to a genetic sample on a matchstick found at the getaway car – which police claim links Shivers to the scene.
But the judge ruled it should not be presented to the court at this stage, after an application by the defence over amended data being received too late to be assessed by them.
Duffy, 43 and from Forest Glade in Lurgan and Shivers, 46 and from Sperrin Mews in Magherafelt, deny murdering sappers Mark Quinsey and Patrick Azimkar.
Both men also deny the attempted murder of six others – three soldiers, two pizza delivery drivers and a security guard – outside Massereene barracks in Antrim.
The trial continues.

Related articles

• Massereene trial hears about DNA (bbc.co.uk)
• Massereene DNA analysis queried (bbc.co.uk)
• Massereene trial: DNA analysis system ‘not used in UK’ (bbc.co.uk)