U.S. to take DNA from all arrested, detained illegal aliens
U.S. to take DNA from arrested, detained immigrants
by Anna Gormana - Jan. 8, 2009 05:44 PM
Los Angeles Times
Beginning Friday, the U.S. government will collect DNA samples from immigrants arrested and detained, despite concerns that the move violates their privacy rights.
The new Department of Justice policy also will expand DNA collection to people arrested on suspicion of committing federal crimes. Previously, the government only obtained DNA from people convicted of certain crimes.
The samples will be added to the national database and used to make identifications through comparisons to crime scene evidence, according to the Justice Department.
"The collection of DNA samples is an important crime-fighting and crime-solving tool," said Evan Peterson, spokesman for the department.
The American Civil Liberties Union said Thursday it is considering filing a lawsuit and that it will closely monitor the additional collection of DNA samples.
"We will be looking to see whether mistakes are made," said Barry Steinhardt, director of the ACLU's technology and liberty program.
Steinhardt said he has "grave concerns" about the rapid expansion of the DNA database to include immigrant detainees and people accused of committing crimes.
"People who are merely accused of a crime or a civil violation of law but haven't been convicted of anything are being subjected to the most invasive sort of testing," he said.
Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., has said the change is designed to prevent violent crimes by deportees who return illegally. Kyl authored a 2005 law that authorized the department to include pre-conviction DNA samples in its national database.
Center for Immigration Studies Executive Director Mark Krikorian said Thursday DNA is becoming a standard law enforcement tool that is better than fingerprints for identification.
"It's especially important with regard to immigration because people are changing their names and presenting easily forged foreign documents," he said. "It's important to know who is who and when someone is lying."
More than 1.3 million samples from immigrants, detainees and federal arrestees are expected to be added to the database under the new policy, according to the FBI. The agency received an additional influx of funds to upgrade its DNA programs and software to accommodate the increased workload.
But Steinhardt said he believes the program will be impractical, saying there is already a backlog.
"The more you expand these databases the greater the returns diminish," he said.
David Leopold, the national vice president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association., said the DNA collection is part of a trend by the U.S. government to treat immigrants as criminals, even though they are civil detainees. Many detained immigrants, for example, are housed in county jails alongside suspected and convicted criminals.
Leopold said he also worries that some of those detained and forced to give DNA will turn out to be U.S. citizens.
"This rule is just a terrifying expansion of power," he said.
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