DNA Testing for 7 Men Accused of Gang Rape in Texas

DNA testing has been court ordered in a Texas case for all 7 men who have been faced with charges of raping an 11 year old girl. However, delays in DNA testing means that the court case has to be postponed till October. The court hearing is taking place in the neighboring town, Liberty.

The girl, who was 11 years old at the time and is now 12, currently lives in a foster home. Her biological mother and father have moved away from Cleveland and are suffering health problems. They have received numerous threats via phone. Work with child care authorities is under way to help reunite parents with their daughter.

The oldest suspect is 27 years old; the other suspects are all under 27 with the youngest being a middle school student. Two of the suspects are star athletes in the high school. The rape has send waves of shock through the little village. The girl was raped on several occasions; the rapes happening in the school place and often by 7 or 8 boys at a time. All possible DNA forensic evidence will be taken into consideration and used against the accused.

The school is located in the small town of Cleveland not far off from Houston. Investigations took place only after a girl reported having seen a shocking video on somebody’s cell phone of a girl being raped and left there.

The charges are serious: the men face aggravated rape charges and 4 of them face charges of continuous abuse of a child. Joe Warren, prosecutor of the case, has pushed for the court case to be postponed until all DNA testing is complete and any DNA evidence to support the case can be presented in court as incontrovertible evidence that will help identity the true perpetrators of this heinous crime.

The judge Mare Morefield is also putting pressure to hasten the DNA testing process which is being carried out by the DPS (Texas Department of Public Safety). For now the case has been rescheduled till October the 13th of this year. DNA testing evidence is often used in crime cases as it helps pin point the guilty parties.