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Civil Rights Law

Companies that operate in the US must be certain that they are in compliance with civil rights laws. Failing to do so can result in costly lawsuits as well as sullied images. Civil rights laws are clear, however, most companies consult with civil rights attorneys so that they can be sure that they are following all of the rules.

Civil Rights Violations

If you have ever had your civil rights infringed upon you probably knew what happened to you immediately. Unfortunately, the vast majority of people are completely unaware of what legally constitutes as a civil rights violation. Learn how to protect your rights by understanding the sometimes complicated nature of civil rights law.

The Legality Of Homeschooling

Parents that choose to home school their children hope to give them an education that is superior to what they would receive if they attended at a public school. Even still, home schooling is regulated by individual states to ensure that all students get an equal education.

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Home · News · DNA Law Struck Down in California

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DNA Law Struck Down in California

A California law that was voter approved has been struck down for violation of constitutional rights. The law required that law enforcement officials were to collect a DNA sample from every individual that was arrested for a felony. A state appeals court ruled that the law violated the rights to privacy of individuals that had not even been charged or convicted of a felony crime. The law was an expansion of statutes that gave law enforcement agencies the authority to recover DNA samples from suspects and convicts with felony records.

The law still effective in 2009 was approved in 2004 by 62 percent of California voters. It required that anyone that was arrested for suspicion of a felony give a DNA sample. That sample would then be added to a database that is accessible to local and state police and the FBI. Of the 407,000 adults arrested in California on felonies in 2009, only about half were convicted. DNA samples from those not convicted remains in the database.

Supporters of the law say that the measure is a powerful resource for police in unsolved cases. And, that the collection of DNA is minimally intrusive. Last year in response to a challenge in federal court, former Attorney General Jerry Brown referred to DNA as "the fingerprint of the 21st century." He declared that giving DNA was no less a violation of privacy as giving fingerprints.

The San Francisco First District Court of Appeal found the law unconstitutional earlier this month. The court stated that there is "an extraordinary amount of private personal information that is not available from fingerprints."

Fingerprints are taken to help officials identify suspects, DNA is collected to be used to link individuals to other crimes, or even crimes that they may commit sometime in the future.

26.08.2011. 04:24


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