Abandoned DNA is Trash

Police have taken to secretly collecting the DNA of suspects by trailing them and sampling their DNA from spit on sidewalk, water glasses, eating utensils, cigarettes, chewing gum, etc. Professor Elizabeth Joh of the University of California Law School says that police treat “abandoned” DNA the same as they would trash, which is searchable without a warrant. It’s your fault if you leave your DNA in a public place.

Professor Joh:

My hope is there will be much greater awareness of what this means, not just for these particular cases, but for everyone. Is DNA sampling going to be ordinary and uncontroversial for the general population, in which case abandoned DNA may not be so alarming, or does it raise a whole host of privacy questions?

Under the UK Human Tissue Act (pdf), analysis of DNA without consent is a punishable offense with some exceptions, including criminal investigation. Clearly, some line needs to be drawn but I hope they draw it so that it separates the criminals from the innocent.

Tags: dna, crime, law, genetics, genes, genome, elizabeth joh, criminals