Housing and Development Newsletter The Sheriff’s Office recently introduced a new investigative tool that has proven effective in a number of critical investigations. The ANDE Rapid DNA instrument was successfully utilized during the Conception boat tragedy in 2019 to allow detectives to quickly identify decedents. The technology has also been used to process minute levels of biological evidence left behind by suspects at crime scenes. The Sheriff’s Office’s success with the ANDE instrument was recently highlighted in an article by the International Symposium on Human Identification. The technology was not available at the time of the Ornelas homicide in 1975, but thanks to the preservation of evidence, and new comprehensive DNA procedures, the ANDE instrument offers a new, reliable and effective tool for investigators to revisit this case.