Chris Asplen has served as Executive Director of the NCJA since January, 2016. Chris is a former prosecutor, and a national and international expert on the use of DNA technologies. Previously, he served as Director of the DNA Legal Assistance Unit for the American Prosecutor’s Research Institute and the National District Attorney’s Association, as an Assistant United States Attorney and as the Executive Director of the National Commission on the Future of DNA Evidence for the U.S. Department of Justice. In private practice, Chris has advocated for policy and legislative initiatives integrating DNA technology, including post-conviction DNA, into criminal justice systems around the world. He has worked with governments and law enforcement agencies in 35 countries to implement DNA technology to maximize its ability to identify and convict the guilty while protecting the innocent.

A noted national and international speaker he has testified before the U.S. Congress, the South African and Philippine Parliaments and has appeared on, and written for, numerous news outlets. He also serves as a consultant to the U.S. Department of State and the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism on the prosecution of nuclear terrorism crimes.