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Should close relatives of criminals be DNA profiled or is it a violation of civil liberties?
Will kinship analysis aid the criminal justice system or abuse human rights?
Earlier this year, in Science Daily, Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys, of the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom, voiced his concerns over the ethics of a DNA database. One of the issues that concerned him was whether close relatives of criminals should be profiled. United Kingdom DNA Database The UK DNA database, with DNA profiles of over four million people, was launched in 1995 and allows all DNA collected by forensics - for whatever purposes - to be stored indefinitely. Kinship Analysis or Familial DNA MappingSir Alec Jeffreys, the inventor of DNA fingerprinting, raised the controversial issue of familial DNA mapping or kinship analysis. This is the process where the DNA of close relatives of criminals is profiled. He expressed his concern that the initial purpose of the database was meant to hold the DNA of convicted criminals. “I have real concerns about the retention of innocent individuals on the National DNA Database. There are also issues concerning familial searching, where the database is used to identify possible relatives of an unknown suspect in a criminal investigation." he said. 2006 Harvard Study – DNA of Close Relatives Should Be UsedIn 2006, Frederick R. Bieber, a Harvard medical geneticist led a study with colleague David Lazer and Charles H. Brenner of the University of California at Berkeley. They cited the case of Deborah Sykes to illustrate their point about people who were wrongly convicted and said that more crimes would be solved if the criminal justice system used the USA’s databases of DNA to profile close relatives. The Case of Deborah Sykes - Darryl Hunt, Wrongly ConvictedIn 1984 Deborah Sykes 25 was brutally attacked in North Carolina. She lost her life. A month later, police arrested a 19-year-old man, Darryl Hunt. Although he maintained his innocence, Hunt was wrongly convicted of the crime and sentenced to life in prison. In 1990 more reliable DNA testing was available and police questioned the bother of a man who was identified by DNA. Confronted with DNA evidence, the man confessed and Darryl Hunt finally walked free after spending half of his life in prison for a crime he didn't commit. The Case of Lynette WilsonIn the 1988 case of Lynette Wilson in South Wales, a specimen from a 1988 crime scene was found to have a DNA pattern similar to that of a 14-year-old boy whose DNA was on file with the police. Investigators obtained a sample from the teenager's uncle, which perfectly matched the crime scene specimen and led to his conviction. Close Relatives of CriminalsClose relatives of criminals are more likely than others to break the law, research has shown, and, because those individuals are related, their DNA fingerprints will be similar. These cases are cited by Harvard University researchers to demonstrate the potential of using the DNA of relatives to catch guilty kin. "Close relatives have particularly similar DNA profiles due to shared ancestry," notes David Lazer. Studies have shown that a person's chances of committing a crime go up if a parent or sibling had previously done so. A 1999 U.S. Department of Justice survey found that 46 percent of jail inmates had at least one close relative who had been incarcerated. Kinship DNA Profiling - Civil Liberties ViolationsWidespread use of the kinship DNA profiling technique where close relatives are profiled raises issues about civil liberties violations Under the Fourth Amendment, U.S. authorities are generally required to show compelling evidence that a person has committed a crime before they can demand a DNA sample. And banking DNA from criminals and arrestees has been challenged as well as it violates Constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure. "If I give up a sample, does that mean I've also committed all my close relatives to a search?" asked Carol Rose, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. "That's where the technology is moving faster than the law." Another thorn in the side of the criminal justice system is the racial imbalance of the offenders. Familial testing would also amplify racial inequities in the criminal justice system, which already focuses disproportionately on blacks, said Troy Duster, a New York University sociologist. Sources: "DNA of Criminals' Kin Cited in Solving Cases", by Rick Weiss, Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, May 12, 2006; Page A10 "Finding genetic needles in database haystacks", by William J. Cromie, Harvard News Office
The copyright of the article DNA of Criminals in DNA & Trace Analysis is owned by Karen Lotter. Permission to republish DNA of Criminals in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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