Alec JeffreysBorn: 1950
Jeffreys discovered a process that detects extremely variable DNA regions, enabling genetic fingerprinting. This made it possible to conclusively link suspects to the scene of a crime based on samples of blood, semen, skin, or hair. It also exonerated numerous people falsely convicted before genetic fingerprinting was invented.
Fact Monster/Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.