Supreme Court Allows the Taking of DNA Upon Arrest

摘要

Police can routinely collect DNA samples from people who are arrested and charged for a crime, a divided U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled, limiting privacy rights and giving police unprecedented access to Americans' DNA.The justices, voting in a close 5-4 decision, upheld Maryland's DNA Collection Act, which was expanded in 2008 beyond DNA samples of people who were convicted of a felony to include anyone arrested for a crime of violence or burglary. The law is representative of a growing trend of states across the country massively expanding their collection of DNA samples. The federal government and at least 26 states allow DNA collection at arrest or have legislation pending that would allow it. Many more may now adopt the practice.