Supreme Court approves warrantless DNA sampling, likens it to fingerprinting and photographingMadison Ruppert This is surely going to be a controversial decision, as their ruling siding with Monsanto over patents on self-replicating technology in May was. Both law enforcement officials and privacy groups were keeping a close eye on the Courts decision in this case because at least 27 states, along with the federal government, currently have regulations requiring suspects to give DNA samples when arrested for allegedly committing certain crimes, regardless of conviction. In the states that have these laws, the DNA samples harvested from suspects are then cataloged in state and federal databases, again without conviction. While DNA evidence is obviously a good thing, especially when it exonerates the innocent, the problem is some states have refused to allow DNA tests when they could prove men sentenced to death to be innocent. Will this ruling change that disturbing practice? Probably not. This ruling seems to be more about harvesting DNA than exonerating inmates. The Supreme Courts decision reversed a 2012 court ruling which said that taking DNA samples from suspects without a warrant was a breach of the Fourth Amendment right to be protected from unreasonable search and seizure. A DNA profile is useful to the police because it gives them a form of identification to search the records already in their valid possession, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote. In this respect the use of DNA for identification is no different than matching an arrestees face to a wanted poster of a previously unidentified suspect; or matching tattoos to known gang symbols to reveal a criminal affiliation; or matching the arrestees fingerprints to those recovered from a crime scene. DNA is another metric of identification used to connect the arrestee with his or her public persona, as reflected in records of his or her actions that are available to the police, Kennedy wrote. According to Kennedy, to not insist on fingerprints as the norm would make little sense to either the forensic expert or the layperson. The majority of the Supreme Court also said that DNA sampling may have the salutary effect of freeing a person wrongfully imprisoned for the same offense Indeed it can, and has, the only problem is that states can block the tests as seen in the cases linked above. The four justices who did not side with the majority saw some disturbing implications in the ruling. Make no mistake about it: because of todays decision, your DNA can be taken and entered into a national database if you are ever arrested, rightly or wrongly, and for whatever reason, Justice Antonin Scalia warned in a dissenting opinion. Scalia, a conservative, was joined in his dissent by three of the more liberal justices including Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. The Courts ruling was in the case of Maryland v. King which began with the arrest of Alonzo King for a gun-related assault charge. King was convicted of the gun charge, but officials also matched his DNA to evidence from an unsolved rape case, Gavin Aronsen wrote for Mother Jones. That, King argued, violated his Fourth Amendment rights. Marylands Supreme Court agreed. More background on the case was given in a February report by Mother Jones. The court in Maryland saw fingerprinting very differently from the Supreme Court. A fingerprint, for example, reveals nothing more than a persons identity, notes David Kravets for Threat Level. But much more can be learned from a DNA sample, which codes a persons family ties, some health risks and, according to some, can predict a propensity for violence. Scalia used a quite effective argumentum ad absurdum to show just how dangerous the Supreme Courts decision really is. Todays judgment will, to be sure, have the beneficial effect of solving more crimes; then again, so would the taking of DNA samples from anyone who flies on an airplane (surely the Transportation Security Administration needs to know the identity of the flying public), applies for a drivers license, or attends a public school, Scalia wrote. Perhaps the construction of such a genetic panopticon is wise. But I doubt that the proud men who wrote the charter of our liberties would have been so eager to open their mouths for royal inspection, he added. Obviously the issue was not whether DNA samples can be taken from convicts. The question was if DNA samples can be taken from arrestees long before theyre convicted or have the charges against them dropped and placed into a database. The disturbing answer is apparently, Yes. Id love to hear your opinion, take a look at your story tips and even your original writing if you would like to get it published. Please email me at Admin@EndtheLie.com Please support our work and help us start to pay contributors by doing your shopping through our Amazon link or check out some must-have products at our store. This article first appeared at End the Lie. Madison Ruppert is the Editor and Owner-Operator of the alternative news and analysis databaseEnd The Lie and has no affiliation with any NGO, political party, economic school, or other organization/cause. He is available for podcast and radio interviews. Madison also now has his own radio show on UCYTV Monday nights 7 PM 9 PM PT/10 PM 12 AM ET. Show page link here: http://UCY.TV/EndtheLie. If you have questions, comments, or corrections feel free to contact him at admin@EndtheLie.com linkwithin_text=Related Articles: 