A number of sheriffs and district attorneys have joined New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in supporting a legislative proposal to expand the state’s DNA databank, reports the Albany Times-Union. ing the state DNA databank. If the Legislature passes the measure, New York would be the first state to take DNA samples from everyone convicted of a misdemeanor or felony.
But Robert Perry of the New York Civil Liberties Union said the potential for error and fraud is great, given the problems that already exist with the databank. “There have been a number of developments that should give policy makers pause, including familial searching based on a partial matches; unauthorized use of DNA by local labs and rogue databanks that maintain samples from people who have not been charged with a crime,” Perry said.