Download This PaperDNA -- Intimate Information or Trash for Public Consumption?
8 Pages Posted: 31 Aug 2009
Date Written: August 31, 2009
Abstract
This essay discusses the increasingly popular police practice of covertly collecting DNA samples from people who inadvertently leave saliva, hair or other biological matter in public places. The essay contends that although the United States Supreme Court has yet to decide whether the practice is constitutional, well-established Fourth Amendment principles of “abandonment” supply the necessary framework to permit the practice and simultaneously protect citizen privacy.
Keywords: DNA, fourth amendment, surruptitious sampling
JEL Classification: K14
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Wilson, Melanie D., DNA -- Intimate Information or Trash for Public Consumption? (August 31, 2009). Baylor Law Review, TexSupp, 2008, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1465043
Melanie D. Wilson (Contact Author)
Washington and Lee University School of Law
Lexington, VA 24450
United States
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