Warrantless, Pre-Arrest DNA Testing and a Suspect's Right to Refuse: Amicus Brief filed in State of Maine v. Spencer Glover (Maine Supreme Judicial Court 2014)
25 Pages Posted: 20 Jan 2014 Last revised: 23 Jan 2014
Date Written: November 1, 2013
Abstract
When law enforcement seeks to obtain a warrantless, pre-arrest DNA sample from an individual, that individual has the right to say "No." If silence is to become a "badge of guilt," then the right to silence — under the United States and Maine Constitutions — might become a thing of the past. Allowing jurors to infer consciousness of guilt from a pre-arrest DNA sample violates the Fourth Amendment to the United States and Maine Constitutions.
Keywords: criminal law, constitutional law, courts, fourth amendment, search and seizure, due process, privacy, equal protection
JEL Classification: K40
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation