Colonel Peter C. Munoz, director of the Michigan State Police (MSP) is pleased to announce the MSP has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to address unsolved violent crimes in Genesee and Saginaw counties using DNA technology.  The grant is part of the NIJ "Solving Cold Cases with DNA" program.

The funding will allow investigators from the MSP, Flint Police Department and Saginaw Police Department to cooperatively identify, review and document unsolved cases.  The investigators will focus on submitting biological evidence for forensic analysis and entry into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) database. 

"Working as partners, law enforcement is having a major impact on violent crime in Flint and Saginaw; but there is still more work to be done," said Munoz.  "Advances in DNA technology significantly increase the likelihood of solving cold cases, resulting in more violent offenders being removed from the streets."

The CODIS is a national database that allows for DNA profiles from open cases and convicted felons to be compared nationwide.  On average, MSP forensic scientists process approximately 30,000 samples each year.  Michigan maintains the sixth largest CODIS database in the country.