DNA Taken From Students In Case Of Murdered Sacramento 8th Grader
SACRAMENTO (CBS SF) - Detectives investigating the killing of a Sacramento 13-year-old last month have collected DNA samples from a number of Sacramento middle school students.
The body of Jessica Funk-Haslam was discovered in the early morning hours of March 6 inside a baseball dugout at Rosemont Community Park. She had been strangled, stabbed and beaten to death.
Investigators had been reviewing surveillance images from the night of her murder, including one recording showing a suspicious man leaving the area.
According the Sacramento Fox television affiliate, Sacramento County detectives showed up at Albert Einstein Middle School last week to talk to former classmates and take DNA cheek swabs in connection with the murder investigation.
Despite concerns from parents over the questioning, officers have said consent an warrants were not required because the swab is considered a non-invasive procedure. A Hastings School of Law professor told CBS 5 that the law is murky on the subject.
No arrests have been made in connection with Funk-Haslam's death.
Homicide detectives continue to seek anyone who may have been with Jessica or was in the vicinity of the park between 6:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. on March 5, the night she left her mother's home after an argument.
Sacramento County is offering $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever killed Funk-Haslam.
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