Kiersten Arata

Presentation Write-Up

ASC 128C

Dr. Christian Perring

Genetic Information and Law Enforcement

My presentation was on Genetic Information and Law

Enforcement. I began by talking about DNA

fingerprinting. First exactly how the process works,

forensic scientists extract DNA from blood, semen,

hair, skin, or any other biological substance found at

the scene of a crime. These DNA samples are then used

to produce a unique pattern of DNA strands that

resemble bar codes, and can be stored in a

computerized data bank. Whether DNA fingerprinting is

foolproof or not was my nest point. I discussed how

it has revolutionized law enforcement since it was

first used in Britain in 1985. It has also helped the

FBI solve almost 600 cases in the U.S. Next I asked

the class if they felt that DNA fingerprinting

infringed on the rights of the innocent. Many

individuals feel that this information requires

careful handling.

I then discussed the issue of Right to Privacy,

explaining that the 4th Amendment guarantees citizens

protection from unreasonable searches and seizures.

However, privacy laws can be ambiguous and open to

different interpretation within courts. Many state

laws vary, and New York is one of the states that has

established one of the nations most ambitious DNA

identification programs.

The third point I made in my presentation was that

there are many legal and ethical questions that

coincide with DNA fingerprinting. Does DNA testing

infringe on our basic constitutional rights? Not

everyone is excited about the promise of DNA testing.

Some feel that it is an invasion of property and might

become dangerous in the wrong hands.

Last I covered two cases. One covering the first use

of DNA fingerprinting in which a young man confessed

to a crime he had not committed because he was

mentally ill. It was not until DNA fingerprinting was

conducted that he was quitted of the crime. The

second case covered the story of two children found

crushed to death in the woods. The two children were

thought to be brother and sister, however, when DNA

testing was done, the children turned out to be

brothers. This inevitably solved the crime.

The feedback that I received for my presentation was

minimal. Many people wrote no comments at all.

However, the comments that I did receive were positive

and encouraging. Almost all made note of my ability

to address the fact that I was extremely nervous.

Most felt that both my topic and presentation were

interesting. According the commentaries, my manner

was very engaging and some even noted I was charming.

Thank you very much.

On the whole, the class seemed to be interested and

were responsive to everything I covered during my

presentation. All comments were positive and the only

thing that seemed to create confusion were my case

studies. I should have summarized them before I

began, I just didn’t want to leave anything out.

However, this caused my presentation to be a little

bit long and wordy. I will work on that.