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September 17, 2005

What if this were in the Patriot Act?

By

Hmm....Britain...home of the Magna Carta and justifiably a place that that can be called the ideological source of the concepts behind freedom and liberty. Yet, everyone arrested must provide a DNA sample.

Officials said they were confident that the forensic investigation collected at the four sites would yield clues that might help them identify and arrest those responsible for the attacks. They also hoped to recover DNA samples from bombs and body fragments. All those arrested in Britain must provide DNA samples even if they do not face criminal charges.

Imagine the hue and outcry this would cause here is this provision was made part of the Patriot Act. Yet, this very practice may lead to the arrest of the perpetrators of this outrage. Undoubtedly, this practice has already lead to arrests for other crimes and the prevention of others.

If the Brits find the bombers using DNA evidence, will civil libertarians here decry this practice as an invasion of privacy, an illegal search and seizure,  the act of a dictatorship?

Ed Lasky    7 8 05