Thursday, September 16, 1999
Chabot urges limit on DNA storage
Privacy rights cited over federal databank
BY PAUL BARTON
Enquirer Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — Big Brother is at it again, this time wanting to store as many samples of DNA as it can get its hands on, Rep. Steve Chabot fears.
Mr. Chabot, along with Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-Mass., is trying to put limits on the government's ability to collect DNA samples and put them into a growing national database called Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
Messrs. Chabot and Kennedy are concerned that federal law enforcement's practice of taking DNA sam ples could get out of hand, resulting in the storage of samples from individuals who might have been arrested or charged but never convicted of a violent crime.
“While access to DNA evidence is an important tool in criminal investigations, we must also ensure that the privacy rights of American citizens are protected,” said Mr. Chabot, R-Cincinnati.
Guidelines for DNA testing by federal law enforcement authorities are expected to be an issue in the passage of a juvenile justice bill in Congress this fall. The bill affects DNA sampling for both adults and juveniles.
While many states have DNA sampling guidelines, this is the first time the issue has been addressed for federal law enforcement officials.
Messrs. Chabot and Kennedy have proposed amending the bill to make the guidelines more restrictive. As of now, they could lead to invasion of privacy for thousands of Americans, the two contend.
They are supported by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which fears the bill could lead to the government's using DNA sampling for purposes beyond forensic identification.
“We know we have a sorry history in this country of databases created for a narrow purpose being used for other broad and disgraceful purposes,” said Barry Steinhardt, associate national director of the ACLU.
In World War II, he said, the government used census data to help round up Japanese Americans for internment camps.
DNA samples can also be used to gather data on blood relatives of criminal suspects, the group said.
One of the provisions in the current bill of most concern to Mr. Chabot and the ACLU would allow the FBI director to determine the types of crimes that qualify for DNA testing.
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