Sister of Molly Bish behind bill to allow police to hunt for violent criminals on DNA databases

BOSTON — For Heather Bish, her sister, Molly Bish, is never far away.

This June, it will be 20 years since Molly was abducted and murdered. Her killer has never been found.

“I miss her as much as I did the day she left. That never changes,” Heather Bish said.

Today, she continues advocating for victim’s rights.

Now, working with State Sen. Anne Gobi, Heather Bish is behind a new bill, just filed, allowing law enforcement to hunt for violent criminals on DNA databases, using familial searches.

In other words, when there’s no DNA match, using a DNA sample to find a family member, pointing detectives in the right direction.

“The beauty of familial testing is, it’s science. It doesn’t wrongly convict anyone,” Heather Bish said.

Almost from the day Molly Bish was taken, her sister and her family have worked hard on child safety issues, including the Amber Alert system.

Last week, Amber Alert was sounded when an 11-year-old girl was kidnapped in Springfield.

Heather Bish told me that when she got the Amber Alert, her heart froze.

“My heart started racing. I started counting minutes: ‘OK, she was taken at 1:30.’ We know 76 percent of children abducted by a stranger, are murdered in the first three hours, so I’m counting and I’m looking at my phone,” Heather Bish said.

But in Springfield, the system worked, and the suspect was arrested in hours. The young victim was found alive.

The system is advocated by the Bish family because of the tragedy they faced two decades ago, which may have saved a life.

“I think about, ‘What a difference Molly has made. What a difference.’ We are all safer in Massachusetts because of Molly," her sister said.

And with this new legislation just filed, Heather Bish hopes we will be safer still.

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