Seminar series on genetics, technology, security and justice. Crossing, contesting and comparing boundaries

Security concerns - about crime, terrorism, mass death atrocities and disasters - are a key driver for the development of new technologies, and human genetics research has played an important contribution here. DNA technologies provide vital resources for the identification of human remains and the production of information that can help to provide evidence in complex crimes.

Sometimes, new forensic technologies have been adopted rapidly while their adequate regulation has been delayed until, in specific instances, unintended uses and impacts have emerged after deployment (e.g. indefinite storage of DNA samples from children in criminal DNA databanks). In other cases, extensive legislative deliberations have preceded, and sometimes rejected, technology implementation. There is a need to collate existing knowledge about the opportunities and challenges that accompany the adoption of forensic genetic technologies to ensure that they respect privacy and human dignity.

Three linked observations will shape the focus of the seminar series.

(1) Comparing DNA uses in security and health contexts: Seminars will identify differences in aims, responsibilities, obligations, and underlying values between the two domains of security and health. For example, whilst issues of informed consent may be central to the use of genetics in healthcare and health insurance, justice and security contexts prioritise speedy identification of dangerous offenders, the production of credible evidence in court, or the unequivocal identification of victims. This prepares participants for the following work.

(2) Identifying issues in the use of medical data in security contexts: Seminars will explore the actual and potential issues that arise when medical data become available to security efforts via the use of novel forensic genetic technologies. Forensic uses of DNA have so far consisted of matching samples from crime scenes, unidentified persons, or volunteers, with existing DNA profiles (e.g. on a DNA database). Novel technologies are anticipated to provide much more information about the donor of a sample, for example their appearance, age, even behaviour. This can impact on the way society understands and treats health data, especially when information is vital in the face of serious criminal, terrorist or mass disaster threats. Seminars will also explore how such novel technologies have already been used, and compare the legal and ethical contexts of their application.

(3) Comparing uses of forensic genetic technologies across countries: DNA technologies and data are increasingly used across national borders. National variation in criminal laws, privacy legislation and police practices render this process very complex. For example, there are differences in who can be asked to give a DNA sample by police forces. Seminars will, by inviting leading scholars from Europe and the USA, compare practices and public and professional debates across a variety of jurisdictions. The development of good practice in the UK can be informed by learning from experience elsewhere, and expectations and misunderstandings in the cross-border use of these technologies can be addressed.

The seminars will bring together academic researchers, policy makers and practitioners from policing organisations, commercial forensic service providers, public sector organisations and civil society groups, in the UK and abroad, to discuss how such technologies can be used to support security while respecting freedom. A network of those involved will be established to disseminate existing and to design new research to inform UK policy and practice on the uses of genetic information to address the societal challenges of justice and security.

This seminar series will impact on academic communities, criminal justice and disaster management practitioners, UK policy makers and public sector representatives, and wider publics.

(1) Practitioners, such as forensic service providers and senior representatives of law enforcement agencies, tend to be well informed about the ways that forensic technologies are deployed in their jurisdiction and abroad. They have practice-informed expectations about current technologies in use, but may not be aware of the reasons for other stakeholders' concerns about risks of technology use. Insights into non-practitioner perspectives - academic and civil society - will supplement practitioners' focus on utility and process with knowledge about social and ethical aspects of technologies, and how the use of the technology affects wider issues than forensic lab work and investigative practice. Equally, practitioners will become more aware of the complexity of technology adoption, and the opportunities and challenges brought by technology adoption across medical and forensic domains and by the cross-national use of technologies. Participating practitioners will be encouraged to contribute to, and collaborate in, new research idea generation and research projects.

(2) UK policy makers and public sector representatives will benefit from the consolidation of social science perspectives on this underexplored area as well as from the formation of a group of multi-disciplinary experts as a community of forensic practice and practice analysis. They will have opportunity to discuss policy and governance of genetic technologies development and emerging uses, and build links with those studying and practicing forensic science. Although scholarly and practical forensic science issues are highly significant, their visibility from social scientific perspectives is often obscured due to the tendency of forensic science to slip between academic disciplines.

(3) UK publics will benefit from information coming out of the seminar series that will assist in the assessment of existing social and natural science research on the security uses of genetic technologies. The inclusion in the seminars of civil society groups like Genewatch, Liberty, The Nuffield Council on Bioethics, and Sense About Science and the Science Media Centre, will ensure that the perspectives of interest groups on civil liberties and science advocacy will be integral to discussions of current research and practice, as well as in new research idea generation. This, in turn, will enable publics to better form judgements about the benefits and risks posed by these uses. They will also benefit from practitioners' increased awareness of the wider social impacts of the use of genetic technologies on criminal justice and security practices.

Organisers and participants of this seminar series have worked in a variety of fields pertaining to criminal justice, disaster victim identification, genetics research, policing and public policy-making. They and their organisations will benefit from the exchange of experiences, a raised awareness of different perspectives, and the mutual learning that will take place during seminars and subsequent collaborations.

The seminar series will foster a more systematic approach to the collaboration of multi- and interdisciplinary expert communities. By drawing on diverse expertise and a broad spectrum of perspectives, the discussions throughout the event series will provide insights into practices of security and criminal justice uses of forensic genetic technologies, thus facilitating broader awareness to complement the depth of participants' specialisations. These discussions are essential for developing good practice models for the use of the science and technologies of genetics.