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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 22 OcTOber 2019
U.S. takes step to require DNA samples from asylum-seekers

By COLLEEN LONG
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The
Trump administration is
planning to collect DNA
samples from asylum-seek-
ers and other migrants
detained by immigration
officials and will add the in-
formation to a massive FBI
database used by law en-
forcement hunting for crim-
inals, a Justice Department
official said.
The Justice Department on
Monday issued amended
regulations that would
mandate DNA collection
for almost all migrants who
cross between official entry
points and are held even
temporarily. In this Thursday, April 18, 2019, file photo, a sign for the Department of Justice hangs in the press briefing room at the Justice
The official said the rules Department, in Washington.
would not apply to legal Associated Press
permanent residents or immigrants through the in- prints and current biomet- that any adult arrested for Justice and Homeland Se-
anyone entering the U.S. creased collection of DNA rics are more than sufficient a federal crime provide a curity officials are still work-
legally, and children un- from a group that can of- to identify criminals and DNA sample. At least 23 ing out details, but cheek
der 14 are exempt, but it's ten slip through the cracks. keep them out of the Unit- states require DNA test- swab kits would be provid-
unclear whether asylum- The Justice official also said ed States. Collecting DNA ing, but some occur after ed by the FBI, the official
seekers who come through it would be a deterrent — is expensive, will be done a suspect is convicted of said. The FBI will help train
official crossings will be ex- the latest step aimed at poorly, and doesn't make a crime. The FBI database, border officials on how
empt. The official spoke to discouraging migrants from Americans any safer," he known as the Combined to get a sample, which
The Associated Press on the trying to enter the United said. Immigrant rights ad- DNA Index System, has shouldn't take more than a
condition of anonymity be- States between official vocates were immediate- nearly 14 million convicted few minutes. Customs and
fore the regulations were crossings by adding hurdles ly critical. "This proposed offender profiles, plus 3.6 Border Protection already
published. to the immigration process. change in policy is ... trans- million arrestee profiles, collects fingerprints on ev-
Homeland Security officials Currently, officials collect parently xenophobic in its and 966,782 forensic pro- eryone over 14 in its custo-
gave a broad outline of the DNA on a much more limit- intention," said American files as of August 2019. The dy. The new regulations will
plan to expand DNA col- ed basis — when a migrant Civil Liberties Union senior profiles in the database apply to adults who cross
lection at the border two is prosecuted in federal policy and advocacy at- do not contain names or the border illegally and are
weeks ago, but it was un- court for a criminal offense. torney Naureen Shah. other personal identifiers briefly detained by Cus-
clear then whether asylum- That includes illegal cross- "It seeks to miscast these to protect privacy; only an toms and Border Protec-
seekers would be included ing, a charge that has af- individuals, many of whom agency identifier, speci- tion, or for a longer period
or when it would begin. fected mostly single adults. are seeking a better life men identification num- by Immigration and Cus-
The new policy would allow Those accompanied by or safety, as threats to the ber and DNA lab associ- toms Enforcement.
the government to amass a children generally aren't country's security." ated with the analysis. That Those who come to official
trove of biometric data on prosecuted because chil- Curbing immigration is way, when people aren't a crossings and are consid-
hundreds of thousands of dren can't be detained. Trump's signature issue, match, their identification ered inadmissible and not
migrants, raising major pri- President Donald Trump but his administration has isn't exposed. further detained will be
vacy concerns and ques- and others in his administra- struggled in dealing with The only way to get a pro- exempt. Other exceptions
tions about whether such tion often single out crimes the surge of people trying file out of the system is to re- are being worked out, the
data should be compelled committed by immigrants to enter the United States, quest through an attorney official said.
even when a person is not as a reason for stricter bor- mostly Central American that it be removed. More than 51,000 detain-
suspected of a crime other der control. But multiple families fleeing poverty Federal and state investi- ees are in ICE custody. Bor-
than crossing the border il- studies have found that and violence. gators use the system to der Patrol custody fluctu-
legally. Civil rights groups people in the United States Authorities made more match DNA in crimes they ates its facilities only hold
already have expressed illegally are less likely to than 810,000 arrests at the are trying to solve. As of migrants until they are pro-
concerns that data could commit crime than U.S. citi- border during the bud- August 2019, the database cessed and either released
be misused, and the new zens, and legal immigrants get year that just ended produced about 480,000 or sent to ICE custody.
policy is likely to lead to le- are even less likely to do so. in September, a high not hits, or matches with law At the height, more than
gal action. For example, a study last seen for more than 10 enforcement seeking 19,000 people were held.
Justice officials hope to year in the journal Criminol- years. Officials say numbers crime scene data, and as- Recently it was down to
have a pilot program in ogy found that from 1990 have since fallen follow- sisted in more than 469,000 fewer than 4,000.
place shortly after the 20- through 2014, states with ing crackdowns, changes investigations. Justice De- The Justice Department
day comment period ends bigger shares of migrants in asylum regulations and partment officials are strik- charged the highest num-
and expand from there, have lower crime rates. agreements with Central ing a line in the regulations ber of immigration-related
the official said. The new Alex Nowrasteh, director American countries, but that gave the secretary of offenses last year since the
regulations are effective of immigration studies at they remain higher than in Homeland Security discre- office began keeping the
Tuesday. the Libertarian think tank previous years. tion to opt out of collect- records: 25,426 with felony
Trump administration offi- Cato Institute, which has DNA profile collection is ing DNA from immigrants illegal re-entry and 80,866
cials say they hope to solve also studied the issue, said allowed under a law ex- because of resource limita- with misdemeanor improp-
more crimes committed by it was unnecessary. "Finger- panded in 2009 to require tions or operational hurdles. er entry into the country.q