It’s like a scene from Gattaca.
With the prick of a finger…a swab of the cheek, the government or law enforcement can obtain an individual’s DNA to determine their entire genome. It’s the future of fingerprinting and booking…and an open invitation to even more government intrusion and tighter control.
And now, after the Supreme Court voted to uphold the practice of taking DNA samples from people who have been arrested, but not convicted of a crime…it’s America’s reality.
It is the biggest threat to personal privacy that we will know. And while it may help solve rape or murder cases, the implications are far reaching and go against whatever freedom ideals this great country thinks it stands on.
The court justified their ruling with this:
“Taking and analyzing a cheek swab of the arrestee’s DNA is, like fingerprinting and photographing, a legitimate police booking procedure that is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.”
They even went as far as calling it a “very minimal intrusion on personal privacy.”
But there’s nothing minimal about forcefully probing an individuals mouth so the government can obtain their entire identity.
So while the Supreme Court argued that they will use DNA samples only for identification purposes, they are liable, and allowed, to change their minds in the future. That means that DNA obtained can be used for whatever purpose they deem necessary…and that could be for things that we can’t even begin to imagine:
– An individual’s DNA could be used to determine a predisposition to violence. The Supreme Court’s ruling said that the government has an interest in DNA identification so that a judge can make an informed decision about granting bail. If studying the genome reveals that “predisposition,” a person could be refused bail, even if they pose no threat to society.
– DNA databasing may encourage Congress and law enforcement to use the information to predict future crimes. This is being done currently with Adam Lanza’s DNA, to determine if they could have prevented his gruesome massacre by studying behavioral genomes. This could mean that innocent people will be convicted of crimes that they haven’t committed.
– Profiling a suspect’s entire genome could also have implications outside of law enforcement. With this information readily available, a suspect may be denied health insurance due to a predisposition to certain diseases.
– Creating an entire DNA database on American citizens who have not been convicted of crimes leaves them vulnerable to hackers or even contamination errors. Because trust in our government has been historically low, some who dissent the database argue that eventually DNA samples could be sold to convict innocent victims, or errors could incriminate a suspect. The accuracy of such an identification method is questionable.
– This means of “identification” is also expensive and not cost-effective for the government. Billions of dollars will be spent on maintaining the database.
In the end, we’re not entirely sure of the limits of this data, or how it may be used in the future. It’s a slippery slope down the path of freedom restrictions and directly challenges our constitutional rights. And if history is any indication…power granted will more likely than not turn into abuse.
So while we want to catch as many “criminals” as possible, we need to keep some things sacred.
Like your entire genetic code. If that’s not off limits…nothing is.
Christina Coleman is the News and Politics Editor at GlobalGrind and a Howard University Alumna. Prior to this she was a science writer. That explains her NASA obsession. She crushes on Anthony Bourdain. Nothing explains that.
