US border patrol collected DNA from thousands of US citizens for years, data shows - Lemmy.World
> In March 2021, a 25-year-old US citizen was traveling through Chicago’s Midway
airport when they were stopped by US border patrol agents. Though charged with
no crime, the 25-year-old was subjected to a cheek swab to collect their DNA,
which was sent to the FBI, according to a new report. The unnamed citizen was
later admitted into the country. Their DNA was added to the FBI’s database of
genetic material despite the lack of criminal charges. > The 25-year-old is one
of about 2,000 US citizens whose DNA was collected between 2020 and 2024 by the
Department of Homeland Security and shared with the FBI, researchers
from Georgetown’s Center on Privacy and Technology
[https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n_3EX9QQzWX599UWy00-DtWh8sZyg65v/view]found in
an analysis of recently released data from US Customs and Border Protection
(CBP). CBP officers took genetic material from some citizens as young as 14,
according to the report. >“In a flagrant and alarming abuse of power, the DHS
has been regularly collecting DNA from US citizens without legal justification,”
said Stevie Glaberson, the director of research and advocacy at Georgetown’s
privacy center. “The lack of checks on DHS’s collection power we think renders
the program unconstitutional and violates the fourth amendment.” > Once
immigration authorities collect DNA and share it with the FBI, it is stored in a
database called the Combined DNA Index System (Codis), which is used across the
country by local, state and federal law enforcement to identify suspects of
crimes using their DNA. A May 2024 report, also from Georgetown’s Center on
Privacy and Technology, found that CBP had been collecting the DNA information
of every migrant detained. Border patrol was also collecting and sharing the DNA
information of migrant children, according to the agency’s data. Initial
estimates show that the sensitive genetic information of about 133,000 teens and
children was being uploaded and stored in this federal criminal database in
perpetuity. > The new CBP documents specifically cover how many US citizens have
had their genetic information collected at various ports of entry, including
major airports. The agency compiled the data and included the ages of the people
whose DNA samples were collected by border agents as well as what charges were
being levied against them. Like the 25-year-old, about 40 US citizens had DNA
samples taken by CBP and shared with the FBI even though they were charged with
no crime. Six of these were minors. > Under current regulation, CBP is permitted
to collect the DNA of any individual – regardless of citizenship status – who
has been arrested, is facing charges or has been convicted of a crime, as well
as non-US citizens who have been detained. > What the law does not allow border
patrol agents to do, Glaberson asserts, is collect the DNA samples of US
citizens simply because they have been detained. But the recently released data
shows that CBP does not have a system to check whether there is a lawful reason
to collect an individual’s DNA, she said. > In some unusual cases, US citizens
had their DNA swabbed for civil – not criminal – infractions such as “failure to
declare” – which could be as simple as a person not declaring an item they
bought abroad. In at least two cases of citizens having their DNA swabbed, the
CBP agent simply wrote down “inspection by immigration officer” under charges. >
“This is CBP’s own administrative data,” Glaberson said. “This is what they’re
writing down. What that data shows is pretty chilling. In case after case, CBP
agents are pulling US citizens aside and swabbing their mouths without any
reason to do so.” > In about 865 of the nearly 2,000 cases of US citizens having
their DNA swabbed by the CBP, no formal federal charges were filed. That means
the cases never went before an independent arbiter such as a judge, according to
Glaberson. > “None of these folks necessarily go before a judge to get the
legality of detention and arrest reviewed,” she said. >DNA data can reveal
incredibly sensitive information, including a person’s genetic relations and
information about those relatives – regardless of their citizenship status. The
information, accessible in a criminal database used to investigate suspects of
crime, could subject people to investigations that they would otherwise not be
swept up in, Glaberson said. > “If you think that your status as a citizen
protects you from of the authoritarian practices, this is proof that it does not
and will not,” she said.
