DoJ to take DNA samples from all detainees

Here is an interesting policy decision with some interesting business implications. The New York Times reported this week that the Justice Department is preparing to permit its law enforcement agencies to collect DNA samples from arrestees and illegal immigrants. The program in fact was created by the recent renewal of the Violence Against Women Act — the idea being to create a database of violent sexual criminals — but many now see it as a strong component of a revived anti-illegal immigrant crackdown. If all goes as planned, those arrested will provide DNA samples as part of the mug shot and fingerprinting booking process. Need it be said that the ACLU does not approve?

We mentioned business opportunities. Consider that of illegal immigrants alone, 1.5 million are in some way detained by federal authorities every year, while an additional 102,000 are arrested on non-immigration-related federal charges. All of them will now have to have their DNA processed — from blood or saliva samples — with an annual increase anticipated of 250,000 to one million samples a year. That is a big leap when one considers that the FBI’s labs currently receive only about 96,000 samples a year and that there is a backlog of about 150,000 DNA samples from convicted criminals waiting to be processed. These complications may offer opportunities for companies to sell the government processes and technologies to speed up the system. One idea currently under consideration by the FBI is robot technology, but the government is interested in all useful ideas.

-read more in Julia Preston’s New York Times report