New law allows forced DNA collection

May 17, 2005

KATE GOLDEN/Frontiersman reporter

Law-enforcement officers can now use "reasonable force" against convicts who refuse DNA swabs, according to a bill signed into law May 5 by Gov. Frank Murkowski.

The sample comes from a mouth swab, not a blood sample. It is a Class C felony to refuse collection of DNA for the state and national databases. Both felons and those convicted of misdemeanors must allow samples to be taken when asked. Refusal is a Class C felony.

"Felons (would) simply refuse - 'I'm in for life, so I'm not going to provide my DNA,'" said Becky Hultberg, a spokesperson for the governor.

"Just the idea that reasonable force can be used will compel the vast majority of people who might refuse," she said.

The potential for such DNA collection to close previously unsolved cases is important for victims, said Commissioner Bill Tandeske of the Alaska Department of Public Safety.

"It's a very human element of what we do," he said.

What sort of force is reasonable? The term is a provision of the continuum of force that's long been used in law enforcement. The officer's presence alone is the first and, Tandeske said, most important rung in the ladder. Violence is only warranted when peaceful tacks have been exhausted.

Reasonable force will be defined in specific policies by corrections officers. Tandeske said he thought abuse of these policies is unlikely.

"Bad cases make bad case law," he said. "Nobody wants to go in and get physical."

Corrections officers dealing with an unwilling convict who's in for the long haul have time to plan their persuasive techniques, he said.

Michael MacLeod, executive director of the Alaska Civil Liberties Union, fought the bill unsuccessfully.

He agreed that most cases probably will be conducted properly. But the AKCLU's objection is with the anomalous case, not the majority: The statute "allows the guards to serve as judge and jury."

"Why do we simply delegate the right to decide … to corrections officers? We've got a judicial system to answer these questions," he said.

Beyond the issue of force, however, the AKCLU opposes the whole idea of DNA collection from prisoners when there's no cause or suspicion to believe they've committed a particular crime.

"We see the creation of the DNA database as one more step the national government is taking in keeping track of all of us," he said.

Contact Kate Golden at 352-2284 or kate.golden@

frontiersman.com.