Monday, February 14, 2005
Bob Johnson
Leave me alone. If there is no probable reason to suspect me of illegal or dangerous activity, I should not be bothered. Our privacy is being invaded at an ever-increasing and alarming rate in this country, and steps need to be taken to insure that it is protected. This is the United States of America, after all, not Stalinist Russia.
The Truro, Mass., Police Department kicked off a campaign to collect DNA samples from its male residents recently. The police are attempting to locate the January 2002 killer of fashion writer Christa Worthington by matching a DNA sample found on her body to the DNA of one of the Truro residents. Worthington was stabbed to death in what CNN.com calls her “isolated” Truro residence. Semen was found on the body but police have yet to make a positive DNA identification. As a result, a widespread drive for DNA sampling of local male residents has commenced. Cape Cod prosecutor Michael O’ Keefe has commented that the names of those who refuse to have a swab taken of the inside of their mouth will be recorded.
Not surprisingly, the American Civil Liberties Union has stepped in and called for an end to the sampling drive.
“The mass collection of DNA samples by the police is a serious intrusion on personal privacy that has proven to be both ineffective and wasteful,” said a letter from ACLU Executive Director Carol Rose and ACLU Legal Director John Reinstein to O’Keefe and Truro Police Chief John Thomas.
I can only wholeheartedly agree. According to CNN.com, mass DNA testing has experienced some success in identifying suspects in parts of Europe but has proved fruitless in similar cases in Louisiana, Nebraska and Virginia. Beyond its subpar success rate, this practice is a blatant and detestable invasion of privacy that can implicate those who choose not to comply merely because they wish to protect their own privacy. Just because I don’t want somebody sticking their fingers in my mouth, I am placed on a list of suspicious characters? No, thank you. If there is no other reason to suspect me in a crime except for my geographic choice of residence, don’t come knocking on my door. It is an insult to credibility and flat out embarrassing.
By the way, Kansans, our state is by no means isolated from these disturbing practices. If you think that such tactics will never reach into your community and affect the lives of people you know, you are mistaken and naïve. According to Dick Kurtenbach, executive director of the ACLU of Kansas and Western Missouri, mass DNA sampling has begun in the Wichita neighborhood where the latest victim of the BTK serial killer was discovered. Like in Massachusetts, those who refuse to participate are placed on a list that Kurtenbach worries many could construe as a “suspect” list.
“There is no evidence that I am aware of where broad-based DNA gathering has been helpful to an investigation,” Kurtenbach said. “Beyond that, there are obvious privacy concerns. This is much different than keeping a database of fingerprints. Not only is a DNA database invasive, the process of collecting the DNA is invasive as well. There are some very serious doubts about this practice.”
Practices like mass DNA testing should be illegal. If police departments are not adept enough at doing their job without resorting to such desperate measures, better detectives need to be trained. Being an American means freedom and freedom means a right to privacy. I am not free if Big Brother is constantly peeking over my shoulder. So, like I said, leave me alone.
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