WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING IS AN ACCEPTABLE ANSWER FOR DNA SOURCE IN A SCENE?

• A. CLOTHES
• B. ANYTHING THE VICTIM TOUCHED
• C. VICTIM BODY
• D. SUSPECT BODY

Answer: (A)

DNA evidence comes from materials that actually carry biological material. Clothing is a strong source because fabric can trap skin cells, sweat, saliva, or blood and preserve that DNA, often making it easier to collect and analyze without disturbing the scene or the body. It’s typically readily available on or around the victim or suspect and provides a stable, usable sample.

In contrast, items the victim touched can be hit-or-miss: contact transfer is unreliable, and you may get mixed or insufficient DNA from many different sources. The victim’s body could be a DNA source, but it isn’t always accessible or practical to collect from right at the scene, and the same goes for a suspect’s body. So clothing stands out as a practical, reliable DNA source at a scene.