ICE expands DNA collection program, raising constitutional and privacy concerns

Under the Trump administration, ICE dramatically increased its DNA-sampling program, collecting genetic material from up to 900,000 detainees in a single year and uploading the records to the FBI-run CODIS system, which now holds over 3 million detainee profiles. The effort also encompassed about 133,000 children as young as four and elderly individuals, and involved $10.1 million in contracts for rapid-DNA testing equipment.

Experts note that existing Supreme Court precedent permits DNA collection only when probable cause exists for a serious crime, a standard not met by most immigration arrests. Scholars such as Ric Simmons and Missy Owen warn that the practice may constitute an unconstitutional general search and could create a permanent “genetic panopticon.” ICE officials maintain the swabs serve limited purposes like verifying familial ties, but courts have not yet addressed whether the program violates the Fourth Amendment. Detainees have limited legal recourse; even if a court deemed the swabs unlawful, the data could still be used in removal proceedings, and class-action suits would not erase already-collected profiles.