Cases Old and Cold

[HairOfTheDog]

Yeah it really should be the same as getting fingerprinted.

Unsurprisingly and understandably..................now that it's been revealed LE used DNA from a family tree website database to identify the Golden State Killer, there's a lot of controversy and concern over privacy issues.

When people submit their DNA to Ancestory.com, 123andMe, and other family tree tracing websites, they're potentially opening up themselves and all of their blood relatives to LE searches. Theoretically, LE could just create a fake profile and upload crime scene DNA to get family tree information, which could be an extremely significant lead. However, I don't know if it would be presentable at trial.

In this case, the DNA match to DeAngelo was not found on either of those two popular websites and LE didn't have a warrant for the search. They didn't need one because they used an unadvertised genealogy site called GEDMatch.

The DNA submitted to GEDMatch site is public because users are hoping unknown family members will also submit their DNA online and the GEDMatch site will connect them, and the GEDMatch user agreement stipulates that the samples are publicly available.

But, there's the potential for user-uploaded DNA to be used to discriminate as well (by insurance companies, employers, etc). Some states, like California, already have laws on the book addressing that possible misuse.

Anyway, I understand both sides of the argument regarding LE using non-criminal DNA databases in their investigations.

I believe DNA could grow from being an important tool in solving crimes to also being a significant crime deterrent as criminals and would-be criminals become aware that if they leave behind any crime scene DNA, they can be tracked down if even a very distant relative has uploaded DNA .

I tend to support LE access to genealogy DNA samples, but with restrictions (only for violent crimes and identification of Jane/John Does, etc).

It'll be interesting to watch this justice vs. privacy debate unfold.