The Use Of Dna Databasing Is Not Only A Controversial Subject

The use of DNA databasing is not only a controversial subject, but a very complex one. On the surface, the Fourth Amendment seems to guard against keeping a database full of individual’s DNA without their will. However, DNA databasing has been used successfully to solve crimes, as well as prove people’s innocence. Does this fact allow investigators to use DNA without a person’s full consent for the greater good? The concept of bodily autonomy says no, but laws and court cases have been interpreted as to say keeping DNA databases are lawful. The morality of keeping DNA databases are up to interpretation of various factors. The purpose of DNA databasing is to assist investigators in solving crimes, as shown by several states’ codes on DNA databasing. Each code has specific criteria and when and why DNA should be taken. The North Carolina code says, â€Å"The Crime Laboratory may contract out DNA typing analysis to a qualified DNA laboratory that meets guidelines as established by the Crime Laboratory.† (DNA Database and Databank Act, 1993) It says nothing about whether the person who donated the sample could have a say in what happened to it. This allows the possibility of the government to infringe upon a suspected criminal’s rights. In the Alabama code, multiple scenarios that can benefit from DNA databasing are listed, but one in particular is intriguing: The DNA of an individual can be taken if it â€Å"assist[s] in other humanitarian purposes including the identification of