As national DNA databank grows, activists targeted

State police have asked about a dozen environmental activists in Maine to provide samples of their DNA as part of an ongoing criminal investigation. Most of those asked did not comply, but now the DNA request is raising concerns about whether government is trying to stifle activism and free speech. Brimming with the genetic patterns of more than three million people in the US, the nation's databank of DNA "fingerprints" is growing by more than 80,000 people every month, giving police an unprecedented crime-fighting tool but prompting warnings that the expansion threatens constitutional privacy protections. With little public debate, state and federal rules for cataloging DNA have broadened in recent years to include not only violent felons, as was originally the case, but also perpetrators of minor crimes and even people who have been arrested but not convicted. Opponents say that the growing use of DNA scans is making suspects out of many law-abiding citizens and turning the "innocent until proven guilty" maxim on its head. "These databases are starting to look more like a surveillance tool than a tool for criminal investigation," said Tania Simoncelli of the American Civil Liberties Union in New York. Once someone's DNA code is in the federal database, critics say, that person is effectively treated as a suspect every time a match with a crime-scene specimen is sought–even though there is no reason to believe that the person committed the crime. Also stirring unease is the growing use of "familial searches," in which police find crime-scene DNA that is similar to the DNA of a known criminal and then pursue that criminal's family members, reasoning that only a relative could have such a similar pattern. Critics say that makes suspects out of people just for being related to a convict. At least 38 states now have laws to collect DNA from people found guilty of misdemeanors, in some cases for such crimes as shoplifting and fortune-telling. At least 28 now collect from juvenile offenders, too. The federal government and five states go further, allowing DNA scans of people arrested. At least four other states plan to do so this year, and California will start in 2009. Opponents of the growing inclusion of people arrested note that a large proportion of charges (fully half for felony assaults) are eventually dismissed. Earth First! DNA sought In April, members of the environmental activist network Earth First! planned to camp on Sears Island in Maine, in defiance of a ban on camping on the state-owned property. But after police searched the island and confiscated equipment found there, the activists decided to camp on private land off the island. There were no arrests or citations, and police eventually returned the camping equipment. But a month later, state police officers knocked on the doors of about a dozen people they identified as linked to the Sears Island events. They had an unusual request: a DNA sample. Will Neils, a supporter of Earth First! in Maine, said the one thing in common among all who have been asked is their vocal opposition to the Seattle-based Plum Creek Timber Co., which is seeking state approval of a development plan covering hundreds of thousands of acres around Moosehead Lake. "They're just focusing on people who are speaking their minds," Neils said, adding they're not all Earth First! supporters. "It's not exclusive to Earth First!. It's actually exclusive to Plum Creek." Neils said Earth First! had nothing to do with attacks on homes and businesses connected with Plum Creek last November. In four different towns, buildings were splattered with paint, and some were hit with animal feces and foul-smelling chemicals. No one was charged, and the matter remains under investigation. Asked if EF! was involved, Neils said: "Absolutely not. Plum Creek has infuriated thousands of people who live in this state with their level of contempt for what Mainers want. They've pissed off so many people, it's impossible to know who went after them." Jim Freeman, another supporter of Earth First!, said he was among the activists asked to provide samples of their DNA, and he refused. Freeman said he was approached by a forensic specialist working for the Maine State Police who initially told him his DNA was wanted as part of an ongoing investigation into a broken padlock on Sears Island. The activist said after more questions, police told him the investigation was actually related to the vandalism incidents against Plum Creek. Freeman said he knows nine of the 12 people police asked to provide DNA samples. "We feel this is just trying to scare us, it has more to do with that than a true investigation," he said. "We're not going to be intimidated by this." While it appears that police did not coerce people or do anything illegal in asking for DNA, the request is troubling to some who question the civil rights implications of collecting DNA samples from people who have not been charged with a crime. "We believe law enforcement doesn't have the right to collect your DNA without a warrant," said Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union. "Environmentalists have a right to criticize the state's policies without fear that it will lead to intimidation or visits to their home and collection of DNA." Judy Berk, spokesperson for the Natural Resources Council of Maine, said asking those who attempted to illegally camp on Sears Island to give DNA samples was a form of intimidation and a kind of a "witch hunt." "Nobody was arrested or charged. That's what's so troubling about this incident. There was no incident," said Berk. "And here they are approaching people in their home[s] and asking them for DNA samples, which is about the most personal information you can give." Berk said it "reflected badly on the state police... I don't know what the state police are investigating, [but the DNA request] potentially will have a chilling effect on free speech." Rep. Janet Mills, D-Farmington, who was a district attorney for 15 years, said she wasn't taking a position on the case, but thinks voluntarily giving up one's DNA is a bad idea. "I would never advise anybody to voluntarily give DNA samples to police, because you don't know what kind of database it's going into or what it will be used for," she said. "There are shades of J. Edgar Hoover in this episode." A lawyer representing some of the activists, Philip Worden, said police were casting an over-wide net. "This does have all the hallmarks of a classic fishing expedition," Worden said. "And obviously the courts do not approve of that if there's any kind of interference with Fourth or Fifth Amendment rights." The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, and the Fifth protects against self-incrimination.