Fishback v. People

We granted certiorari to review the decision of the Colorado Court of Appeals in People v. Fishback, 829 P.2d 489 (Colo.App.1991), affirming the trial court’s admission of identification testimony based on a comparison of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) obtained from the defendant’s blood with the DNA from a semen sample recovered from the victim. The admissibility of DNA identification evidence is a question of first impression for this court.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The defendant was convicted of first degree sexual assault, second degree burglary, and mandatory sentence violent…