# Plant DNA murder conviction

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plant-dna-murder-conviction/126108>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [August 29, 2002, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plant-dna-murder-conviction/126108 "2002-08-29T15:51:56Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![AmbushBug](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ambushbug/32/4600_2.png) [@AmbushBug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmbushBug)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2002, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plant-dna-murder-conviction/126108/1 "2002-08-29T15:51:56Z")

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[Can plants be identified by their DNA the way humans can?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mplantdna.html)

A quick [google search](http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=dna+truck+seed+pods+criminal+murder) based on a remembered TV show, revealed such items as [this page](http://www.ornl.gov/hgmis/elsi/forensics.html), which contains many non-human examples of DNA testing.

The remembered episode of _Scientific American Frontiers_included a man convicted of murder because his truck had seed pods from a particular wild tree near the scene of the crime.

AmbushBug