Genetic testing plan under fire

Nevada law requiring anyone convicted of a felony to provide a DNA sample would be revised to mandate the sampling for anyone arrested for a felony, under a bill debated Friday by the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

Under AB234, the genetic information would be kept in a database if the person was convicted, but would be expunged if the charges were dropped or reduced.

Assemblywoman Heidi Gansert, R-Reno, author of the measure, cited a Chicago study that stated many murders and rapes could have been prevented if DNA had been collected from repeat offenders the first time they were arrested.

"It has been proven that it can prevent future murders, sex offenses, and all sorts of different crimes," Gansert said. "Catching the offenders early is critical, and this legislation will help us do that."

But Lee Rowland of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada said that extending DNA collection to arrested people would go "too far down the slippery slope of choosing criminal prevention over individual liberties and rights," and would violate the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Rowland also said that the collection and storage of massive amounts of detailed genetic information could lead to privacy issues, and potentially threaten people's ability to obtain health insurance.

Orrin Johnson, representing the Washoe County Public Defender Office, also argued the DNA collection would violate the U.S. Constitution, adding that if the law was passed but was later found to be unconstitutional, the DNA couldn't be used as evidence to help convict someone.

"It's important to consider the impact of the strength of convicting someone based on evidence later could be found to be unconstitutional," Johnson said.

Renee Romero, lab director for the Washoe County sheriff's office, said she supported the spirit of the plan, but its implementation could cost several million dollars a year. As the bill is written, those arrested would pay a $150 fee for the DNA test " if they had the money to pay.

Romero also said about 86,000 people are arrested yearly in Nevada for felonies, but only about 13,000 are convicted and the rest are either cleared of charges, or their charges are reduced.