
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, June 2, 1994                    TAG: 9406020457 
SECTION: LOCAL                     PAGE: D4    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT 
DATELINE: 940602                                 LENGTH: Short

STAFF WRITER WINS AWARD OF PRESS, BAR ASSOCIATIONS

{LEAD} Lynn Waltz, a staff writer for The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, has won first place in the third annual Virginia Press Association and Virginia Bar Association contest to recognize outstanding writing in the field of law and justice.

Waltz will receive a plaque at the VPA summer meeting July 9 at the Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach.

{REST} Her contest entry included stories about John Tingle, a defendant whose conviction was later reversed. Tingle was found guilty of assaulting a woman in Virginia Beach last year. He was convicted mainly on the woman's testimony and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The woman developed doubts about identifying Tingle after stories by Waltz raised the possibility of a look-alike suspect. The woman later viewed another suspect in court and told a judge she was no longer sure of her identification. Tingle was freed.

Waltz's entry also included stories on how law enforcement officials are using DNA databanks to solve crimes.

Police take semen or blood samples from crime scenes and see if the DNA matches that of imprisoned felons whose blood has been stored at a forensic lab.

{KEYWORDS} AWARD

by CNB