Defense lawyers for a man accused of beating and strangling Karina Vetrano in Queens almost three years ago claim their client was caught with the help of a 'race-based dragnet' involving DNA samples from hundreds of black men in police custody in Queens or Brooklyn, according to a piece in the New York Times from Jan Ransom and Ashley Southall.
A 22-year-old man, Chanel Lewis, was charged in the case and has had one trial resulting in a hung jury, the duo explained.
"As Mr. Lewis's second trial is coming to a close, his defense lawyers are raising questions about whether prosecutors withheld critical evidence about the wide genetic canvass," they write, "as well as whether the police initially suspected that two white men had killed Ms. Vetrano."