Chris Asplen is a
DNA policy expert with extensive U.S. federal, state and international experience.
Early career
Chris Asplen was born and raised in
Bucks County, Pennsylvania. After graduating from The Dickinson School of Law of
Penn State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...
, he returned to Bucks County as an
Assistant District Attorney to specialize in the prosecution of sex crimes and child abuse. He is recognized as one of the foremost legal experts on
forensic DNA technology.
After leaving the Bucks County District Attorneys Office, Asplen became the Director of the DNA Legal Assistance Unit for the American Prosecutor's Research Institute and the National District Attorney's Association in
Alexandria, Virginia. As Director of the DNA Unit, he developed prosecutor training courses not only for DNA unit but also for
Domestic Violence
Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...
and
Child Abuse
Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...
Units. He also taught extensively in the area of Domestic violence.
US Attorney's Office, Department of Justice and White House
In 1997, Asplen was appointed Assistant United States Attorney for the US Attorney's Office in
Washington D.C. and worked in the Domestic/Family Violence Unit.
In 1997 Asplen was also appointed as the Executive Director of the National Commission on the Future of DNA Evidence. The Commission's mission was to “Maximize the potential of DNA technology in the criminal justice system.” The Commission consisted of national and international experts in areas of law enforcement, science, legal...
In 2000 he was appointed Team Leader for the
White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, White House Initiative on Law Enforcement Technology, representing the Department of Justice's Office of Science and Technology Policy. In 2006 he was hired by the
Department of Justice as the Chief Faculty Member for the President's Initiative on DNA's Training for Officers of the Court.
London career
Upon leaving the United States Department of Justice, Asplen joined the firm of
Gordon Thomas Honeywell (originally Smith Alling Lane) and opened the firm's
London office. Gordon Thomas Honeywell has contracts with Life Technologies, a leading provider of forensic DNA testing equipment and services. From London, he consulted with the US National Institute of Justice, foreign governments and other
law enforcement agencies on the establishment and implementation of
DNA database
A DNA database or DNA databank is a database of DNA profiles which can be used in the analysis of genetic diseases, genetic fingerprinting for criminology, or genetic genealogy. DNA databases may be public or private, the largest ones being na ...
s as well as
crime scene investigation Crime scene investigation may refer to:
* Forensic inspection of a crime scene
* ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' (2000-2015), a US television series
* ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' (video game), a 2003 videogame based on the TV show
* ''C ...
. He has worked with the governments of the
United Kingdom,
Italy,
South Africa,
the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
India,
Kenya,
Croatia,
Serbia,
Russia,
Chile,
the Netherlands and several more. He is also a member of the
International Association of Prosecutors
The International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) is a global non-governmental organisation of prosecutors, established by the United Nations in 1995, Vienna. It has 183 organizational members from 177 countries, and individual members.
The IAP ...
.
References
Consultants , GTH-GAChris Asplen quotes
*https://web.archive.org/web/20070211074244/http://www.justicetalking.org/viewprogram.asp?progID=582
*http://www.tjols.com/article-113.html
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asplen, Chris
Living people
American lawyers
West Chester University alumni
People from Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Year of birth missing (living people)
Dickinson School of Law alumni