24-Sep-2015

Michael Gardner pleads guilty in two child sex abuse cases

Arlington, VA

Former Falls Church political leader Michael Gardner pleaded guilty to molesting young girls in two separate cases. He was on trial for molesting a twelve year old female relative in 2009, soon to be retried for molesting three girls at his daughter’s slumber party in 2011. The trials ended when Gardner abruptly pleaded guilty to all charges. He will serve 20 years in prison.

Cybergenetics TrueAllele® Casework linked Gardner’s DNA to the girls clothing at the slumber party. TrueAllele separated mixture evidence from underwear into genetic types that strongly matched both Gardner and his victim, implicating him in the crime. Dr. Mark Perlin testified at the 2012 Arlington trial that led to Gardner’s initial conviction and a 22 year sentence.

• Former Falls Church political leader pleads guilty in child molestation cases - Newspaper
• Commonwealth of Virginia v Michael Gardner - Trial
• Easy reporting of hard DNA: computer comfort in the courtroom - Article
• DNA expert testifies in Gardner molestation trial - Television