DNA samples for convicted felons YES
DNA samples for convicted misdemeanors NO

North Bergen senator's bill would mandate DNA samples be taken after disorderly persons convictions

By Michaelangelo Conte/The Jersey Journal
June 18, 2013 at 9:34 AM

A bill co-sponsored by state Sen. Nicholas Sacco would add convictions for disorderly persons offenses or ?misdemeanors? to the list of offenses that require biological sampling for the DNA database.

?DNA testing provides a valuable tool for investigating unsolved crimes and ultimately removing serious offenders from our streets,? said Sacco, who sponsored the bill with Sen. Paul Sarlo.

?We have a responsibility to act preemptively and collect DNA samples before the individual commits another offense or becomes a fugitive,? said Sacco of the bill, which passed the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously Thursday.

Under the bill, DNA samples would be taken from adults convicted of disorderly persons offenses, juveniles adjudicated delinquent, and persons found not guilty by reason of insanity, Sacco spokesman Phil Swibinski said.

State Police would identify and analyze the DNA samples and DNA information would be stored in a state database and forwarded to the FBI for inclusion in the federal database. The law would pertain to disorderly persons offenses, which already require fingerprinting. Those incarcerated or on parole for specified disorderly persons offenses when the law becomes effective would be required to submit to DNA sampling.

In a June 3 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the ?quick and painless? swabbing procedure is a search under the Fourth Amendment, and deemed reasonable because of ?the need for law enforcement officers in a safe and accurate way to process and identify the persons and possession they must take into custody.?

Samples are currently taken from all those convicted of indictable offenses as per the DNA Database and Databank Act of 1994. Samples are taken by means of a ?buccal swab,? in which the subject?s interior cheek is swabbed.

The bill, S-436, will now go before the full Senate for consideration.

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