RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Whose DNA Is It Anyway? European Court, Junk DNA, and the Problem With Prediction
JF Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
JO J Am Acad Psychiatry Law
FD American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
SP 247
OP 250
VO 38
IS 2
A1 Sameer P. Sarkar
A1 Gwen Adshead
YR 2010
UL http://jaapl.org/content/38/2/247.abstract
AB In this article, we discuss the implications of a recent European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decision about the use of retained DNA profiles in criminal cases. Met with polar but equal passion from both the privacy lobby and law enforcement, this case has opened concerns regarding ethics in the nascent science of DNA profiling. Although the technology is touted as the most exciting breakthrough since fingerprinting in crime solving, there are questions regarding its use. The case decided by the ECHR intensified the debate on privacy, state control of information, and the public's right to be safe. New proposals in response, however, raise more questions than they sought to answer, ranging from unfettered data mining to the pitfalls in risk prediction.