House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) is calling on FBI Director Christopher Wray to investigate reports of San Francisco police using DNA from a victim of sexual assault to charge her with an unrelated crime.
“Though there are still many unanswered questions about the extent of this practice, the fact it may have occurred at all is deeply disturbing. I fear it will have a chilling effect on sexual assault reporting,” Schiff wrote in his letter to Wray.
He continued, “Any perception among victims that law enforcement views them as a potential offender could further reduce already low rates of reporting of sexual assaults.”
Schiff went on to argue the FBI is “uniquely positioned to prevent any federal, state, or local law enforcement agency from improperly uploading DNA profiles obtained from crime victims.”
He urged Wray to respond to a series of questions no later than March 4.
Concluding his letter, Schiff wrote, “I appreciate your timely response to these questions and are eager to work with you to ensure that survivors’ rights and dignity are upheld by law enforcement around the country. If necessary, I stand ready to draft legislation to ensure that DNA sexual assault kits are not used in this manner.”
San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin (D) commented on the practice in a statement, as The New York Times reported.
She claimed the victims whose DNA samples are being used like this are “being treated like criminals.”
Boudin added, “This practice treats victims like evidence, not human beings. This is legally and ethically wrong.”
Chief William Scott of the San Francisco Police Department also released a statement responding to the reports.
“If it’s true that DNA collected from a rape or sexual assault victim has been used by S.F.P.D. to identify and apprehend that person as a suspect in another crime, I’m committed to ending the practice,” Scott said.
He continued, “We must never create disincentives for crime victims to cooperate with police.”