New York Gov. David Paterson has proposed expanding the state's DNA database to include samples from "low-level offenders" convicted of misdemeanors, the Associated Press reports. This would make New York the first state in the nation to collect DNA in such a broad fashion. New York's database began in 1996 with DNA from convicted murderers and sexual predators, the report states, and has been expanded three times to now include samples from some 356,000 people convicted of felonies and certain misdemeanors. While some are praising the plan as a way to solve crime and exonerate those who have been wrongly convicted, the New York Civil Liberties Union is cautioning that the proposed expansion raises questions about privacy rights and requires independent study.
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