Taser used by police in New York State to overcome resistance to collecting DNA
June 6, 2009According to the Buffalo News a man who was a suspect in a shooting and robbery refused a DNA test. After consultation with the attorneys involved, who had obtained a court order for the DNA test, the police tased the man so that they could obtain the DNA sample. The DNA sample did match the man to evidence collected at the crime scene and a judge ruled that the DNA evidence obtained in this way was admissible.
This seems to me to violate the Fourth Amendment. It’s making a court-ordered medical test into an automatic search warrant, which to me seems like a Bad Thing. Police should have to get an actual search warrant before they can use force to collect someone’s DNA. One of the reasons it’s possible to be in “contempt of court” is that you’re supposed to be free to make the choice - according to this blog posting and the commentary even for a subpoena to be enforced there has to be a finding of contempt.
(I’m not a lawyer.)
SteaknAle
Jun 6, 2009
Quite frankly, Tasers are an instrument of torture and should be illegal.
Vis Unita Fortior
Jun 7, 2009
I don’t think they should be illegal but I think that nationally we need to set some firm rules for exactly how they can be used. From the reports in the news they’re being used way too often without cause for my taste. They cannot simply be a means of coercion when people are doing non-violent things. They ought to be the option that lets cops use less-than-lethal force when lethal force would otherwise be necessary - not some extra leverage that makes it really easy to twist someone’s arm whenever it’s convenient.
If someone wants to refuse a drug test or in some sort of disagreement with a cop and the cop has a means of just walking away, a taser can’t simply be a tool that lets a cop get his way in any situation or otherwise prevent someone from resisting him.
gth
Jun 7, 2009
Holy Crap ! Vis. We agree on something?
Vis Unita Fortior
Jun 8, 2009
It’s amazing, for sure.