By now, after years of criminal investigation shows on television and real life court room drama, the general public is aware of the power of DNA evidence. It is a unique identifier. The next wave of DNA science may be somewhat more frightening:

“…Rather than simply proving, for example, that the blood on a suspect’s clothes does or does not match that of a murder victim, these “second generation” DNA tests seek to shed light on the biological traits and psychological states of the accused. In effect, they allow genes to “testify” in ways never before possible, in some cases resolving long-standing legal tangles but in others raising new ones.”

link: DNA tests offer deeper examination of accused

The DNA may not only be that unique identifier. It may be possible to provide a personality profile of the individual. It would not be out of the realm of possibility, for example, if governments tried to prevent certain DNA profiles from having children. Imagine the cost savings to governments if criminals and terrorists were eliminated in this ‘pre-conception’ manner.

The next bold step in science and litigation seems to be “genetic predisposition”. The legal, moral and ethical issues would be monumental. Perhaps one would like to think that this is such a remote possibility. However, organizations like the FBI are wanting to collect DNA samples and build data bases. The use of these DNA data bases for security purposes is understandable by today’s standards of the limitation of the science. Nevertheless, these DNA data may have long term implications on your grandchildren and generations beyond. Giving today’s DNA sample may be have far reaching impact - more than one can ever imagine.

Catherine Forsythe
Director of Operations
FlyingHamster:  http://flyinghamster.com/

[tag]dna testing, data base, the next wave, criminal intent, fbi, security, genetic predisposition[/tag]