Orange County to use animal D-N-A to nail criminals

SANTA ANA, Calif. Think of it as "C-S-I" meets Animal Planet.

Orange County law enforcement officials say they hope to start using D-N-A from pets and other animals as forensic evidence in criminal investigations.

County authorities plan to cooperate on investigations with the Serological Research Institute in Richmond. That would make it the first local law enforcement agency in the country to make animal D-N-A a primary source of evidence.

Using animal evidence has been rare because few crime labs have accreditation for testing animals, but it's already helped solve some crimes.

Hairs from a cat named on a bloody jacket to help linked a man to the murder of his estranged wife in Canada. And urine sprayed on a truck tire by an Iowa farm dog helped identify the man who tried to rape his owner.