Child DNA database needed

To the editor:

This is the hardest letter I’ve had to write; not only because child molestation is so hard to deal with, but because our choices to bring the abuser to justice without the child him or herself, makes catching the abuser almost impossible. In a country where we low-jack our dogs for safety, we do not gather DNA of our children for a database, to be able to identify a child, even when only their DNA is present.

You may think that isn’t a problem. I believe differently. I’ve witnessed four situations where child abuse was likely, if not proven. In each case, because the child’s DNA was an unknown factor, So, you say, gathering a child’s DNA is intrusive. As intrusive as abuse? Plus, that ship has already sailed, intrusive is what our country does every day. Lets give the police, troopers, FBI, something they can use, against child molestation. Let’s allow children’s DNA to be on file till the age of 18, then destroy! (with witnesses) within our own state.

Lillian K. Staats

Palmer