Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by byteduck 1380 days ago
It’s a matter of not disincentivizing victims from cooperating with law enforcement. If there’s the possibility that some information you give the police could be used to prosecute you in the future, that could deter people from going to the police or seeking justice in the first place.

In terms of DNA specifically, it’s kind of a weird power play to say “if you want us to convict the person who raped you, we’ll have to put your DNA into our database to make it easier to convict you in the future”.
1 comments
mrozbarry 1379 days ago
I think that's a bit of a bad argument, maybe a strawman. The whole point of the law is to make good citizens so we can all live together. It is in the best interest of both individuals and a community as a whole to not break the law. Breaking the law has consequences. It is the job of the police and justice system to find criminals and punish them. Finding criminals requires the justice system to find evidence and proof.

Let's make another scenario: someone's home was burglarized, and the family who lives in the home submits DNA so the police/investigators can flag finger prints/DNA not left by the family. It turns out the father of the house raped and killed several women 30 years before. The DNA submitted by the family has effectively convicted their father by volunteering his DNA for crimes he committed 30 years ago. Would you be equally upset that this rapist and murderer has been caught?

link
mixmastamyk 1379 days ago
Yes, you can scale the offense up to the point where most would answer yes to allowing this.

It’s interesting that in the past I wouldn’t have been extremely worried about it. But times have changed. Asking for consent is now considered old-fashioned. Law enforcement has been taking every technological shortcut offered as soon as it is in budget.

It’s a dangerous time we’re heading into. Well, already arrived in. Big brother panopticon is a reality. In this environment I see the precedent in a new light. Reminds me of the movie Gattaca, which is not a feel-good film.

link
mrozbarry 1379 days ago
> Yes, you can scale the offense up to the point where most would answer yes to allowing this.

So, you are saying the judicial system should only use evidence depending on how severe the crime is? That is a very poor precedent.

link
mixmastamyk 1379 days ago
No, I'm saying you have raised the severity with your example perhaps to further your argument in favor of storing this data indefinitely. "What about the children?" Indeed.
link
ratg13 1379 days ago
If you are in favor of the police having DNA for this purpose, then they should be given everyone's DNA birth samples.

Arguing that it is okay to only take the DNA of people who willingly cooperate with police only incentivizes people to never cooperate with police.

link