The legal landscape just changed with regard to obtaining a warrant to collect DNA from criminal offenders.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Supreme Court has delivered a decision that has enormous ramifications for criminal offenders and criminal defense attorneys. The Court handed down a ruling that says law enforcement officers may gather DNA samples without getting a warrant first and such a process does not violate the 4th Amendment (protection against unreasonable searches and seizures).<\/p>\n
While the Court indicates gathering DNA is a minor intrusion, there are others that suggest it will exponentially increase police powers \u2013 powers that may well be open to abuse.<\/p>\n
As it now stands, anyone arrested in Florida for a serious crime is expected to comply with the police, allowing them to collect a mouth swab. Criminal defense attorneys view this as one more insult to the tenet that everyone suspected of a crime and\/or arrested is presumed innocent until proven guilty (more…)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The legal landscape just changed with regard to obtaining a warrant to collect DNA from criminal offenders. The U.S. Supreme Court has delivered a decision that has enormous ramifications for criminal offenders and criminal defense attorneys. The Court handed down…<\/span><\/p>\n