U.K. DNA Program Contested in European Court
In a case that could prevent the U.K. gene police from continuing with an ambitious program to collect DNA samples from as many citizens as possible, two arrestees who were never convicted are seeking a court order requiring their samples to be destroyed.
Lawyers for Michael Marper, 45, and a teenager identified as “S” told the European Court of Human Rights yesterday the United Kingdom’s policy of retaining DNA samples of all arrestees violates the European Human Rights Convention, reports the London Times. The convention guarantees “respect for private life” and the “prohibition of discrimination.”
As discussed in an earlier ABAJournal.com post, the ambitious—and controversial—U.K. testing program has compiled a huge database of 4.5 million DNA samples because all arrestees are required to provide them, even if they are juveniles or the offense is minor. The samples stay in the database regardless of whether the arrestee is acquitted.
The sweeping U.K. testing program—which U.S. officials have expressed some interest in emulating—has helped British authorities resolve a number of cold cases involving violent crimes. However, it has been criticized both for retaining DNA samples from arrestees who have not been convicted and for using methods, such as “familial” DNA testing that may also cast suspicion on innocent people who have never been involved in the criminal justice system.
“This is the most important case on the human rights implication of retaining biometric data and will probably [be] one of the most important human rights cases of all time,” says Howells solicitor Peter Mahy, one of the lawyers representing the men in the human rights court.
