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Federal law enforcement agencies say they plan to start collecting DNA samples from everyone they arrest. According to an Associated Press article by Eileen Sullivan, the federal government also plans to use its authority granted by Congress to collect DNA samples from foreigners who are detained, whether they have been charged or not. DNA would be collected through a cheek swab, Justice Department spokesman Erik Ablin told reporters at a news conference recently. The proposal is a departure from current practice, which limits DNA collection to convicted felons.
But critics say that expanding the DNA database, known as CODIS, raises serious civil liberties questions about the potential for misuse of such personal information. The DNA samples can be used to determine everything about an individual from family ties to genetic conditions.
Congress gave the Justice Department the authority to expand DNA collection in two different laws passed in 2005 and 2006. There are dozens of federal law enforcement agencies, which in combination make an estimated 140,000 arrests each year.
Supporters of the plans to expand collection believe that DNA sampling could get violent criminals off the streets and prevent them from committing more crimes. A Chicago study in 2005 suggested that 53 murders and rapes could have been prevented if a DNA sample had been collected upon arrest.
"Many innocent lives could have been saved had the government began this kind of DNA sampling in the 1990s when the technology to do so first became available," Senator Jon Kyl, a Republican from Arizona told the AP. Sen. Kyl sponsored the 2005 law that gave the Justice Department the authority to enact this program.
Thirteen states have similar laws: Alaska, Arizona, California, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
But the new regulation would mean that the federal government could store DNA samples of individuals who are not guilty of any crime, according to Jesselyn McCurdy, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union.
"Now innocent people's DNA will be put into this huge CODIS database, and it will be very difficult for them to get it out if they are not charged or convicted of a crime," McCurdy said.
If a person is arrested but not convicted, he or she can “ask” the Justice Department to destroy the sample. Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites        
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