California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Lowe, 165 Cal.Rptr.3d 107 (Cal. App. 2013):
Last, by helping identify the actual perpetrators of crimes, the DNA database allows law enforcement officers to eliminate innocent persons from suspect lists. (See King,supra, 133 S.Ct. at p.1974 ["[I]n the interests of justice, the identification of an arrestee as the perpetrator of some heinous crime may have the salutary effect of freeing a person wrongfully imprisoned for the same offense."]; United States v. Sczubelek (3d Cir.2005) 402 F.3d 175, 185 ["[T]he DNA samples will help to exculpate individuals who are serving sentences of imprisonment for crimes they did not commit and will help to eliminate individuals from suspect lists when crimes occur."].) The privacy intrusion caused by a buccal swab of a felony arrestee must be viewed as minor compared to society's compelling goal of ensuring that innocent people are exonerated.
3. Balancing and holding
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.