Family genealogy testing is an exciting way for people to validate familial mythology. People who have long believed their families to be Italian might find out that they are actually more Greek than Italian, for example.
Learning about distant ancestors and genetic traits through genetic testing has become commonplace, with several popular companies offering mail-in testing kits that help people explore their family genealogy and discover previously unknown relatives. While those tests may sate an individual’s curiosity and prompt exciting conversations at the next family reunion, they also create legal vulnerability for other relatives.
State and federal law enforcement agencies might use genealogy databases to identify suspects for open criminal cases. A test taken to learn about one’s family could result in a family member facing criminal charges.
The issues with using genealogy databases to solve crimes
In scenarios where law enforcement professionals have forensic evidence from the scene of a crime but no other means of identifying the perpetrator, they may look for genetic matches. While there are databases with information about people convicted of major criminal offenses, not everyone implicated in the crime has a prior history.
However, advances in genetic sequencing and analysis have made it easier to connect genetic information from those undergoing genealogy-related tests to the materials found at a crime scene. One family member’s test could result in law enforcement professionals determining that their family was likely involved in the crime and then intensifying the investigation.
Genetic databases have played a role in numerous cold case resolutions in recent years, but they raise many questions about personal privacy and the overreach of government authority. Frequently, the people who pay for genealogical testing are not the people implicated in criminal activities. The people eventually accused of the crime did not consent to testing or voluntarily provide their DNA.
Additionally, concerns about abuses of these databases raise questions about government overreach. There are also accuracy issues to consider. From the impossibility of differentiating between identical twins to the risk of contamination, there are many credible reasons to question the use of genetic information submitted for genealogical analysis as part of the criminal investigation.
Consulting with a criminal defense attorney is typically necessary in cases where the state claims to have genetic evidence connecting a person to a criminal offense. Defendants implicated due to a family member’s genealogical testing may need help fighting back against potentially questionable law enforcement practices, and that’s okay.
