A Critique of the Police's Right to Ask for DNA

Abstract

This paperexplores one aspect of the impact of DNA identification technology on policing. To date, discussions of policing and DNA have largely focussed on competing claims about whether the new technology will lead to an increase in investigative efficiency and accuracy. This debate ignores other ways in which policing may be transformed by technological developments.

In this paper, I am interested in police requests for people to consent to a DNA sampling procedure. I argue that such requests permit a new form of surveillance permitting investigators to observe individuals' behaviour for signs that they fear detection through DNA identification. I claim that this new form of surveillance amounts to a novel infringement of the privilege against self-incrimination and argue for the abolition of the consensual system for obtaining DNA profiles from known individuals.

Keywords: DNA, surveillance, self-incrimination, databases, policing