Rapid DNA—legislation sponsored in the Senate and championed by Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the senior member and former Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee—is headed to the President’s desk for his signature after passing both the House and the Senate with widespread bipartisan support.
Once signed, the bill will be Hatch’s 769th legislative proposal signed into law.
Last month, Hatch visited the Utah State Crime Lab with Ed and Elizabeth Smart, as well as Utah’s US Attorney John Huber. There, they heard directly from Utah law enforcement officials how Rapid DNA will help them solve crimes more quickly and, in some cases, exonerate the innocent faster.
Speaking of the importance of Rapid DNA, Elizabeth Smart said, “Anyone who kidnaps a child definitely deserves to be in prison,” she said. “Anyone who sexually abuses a woman, a child, a man deserves to be in prison. And this will help that.”
