Catherine Faville
Forensic current event
Kolata, Gina, and Heather Murphy. “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Apr. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/health/dna-privacy-golden-state-killer-genealogy.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%2BScience&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/health/dna-privacy-golden-state-killer-genealogy.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%20Science&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection
For this current event article I read “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder” written by Gina Kolata. The article discussed how popular genetic testing has become, such as companies like 23and me. However these types of websites were able to assist police detectives in a criminal case. Although the police used a public genealogy database, they were able to catch the seventy two year old Joseph James DeAngelo, there were of course ethical and privacy issues in the way they were able to catch him. This issue made people question if the way he was captured was justified or not. However the Golden State killer is linked to more than fifty rapes and twelve murders between the time periods of 1976 and 1986. He managed to escape everytime, in my personal opinion the people he has harmed and effected deserve justice for the trauma he has caused, if the police had to allude privacy issues to do it, so be it.
This article has a massive impact on today's time, there are still many people who go with family members or friends who have suffered without justice. With the popularity of genetic background test, it makes it easier to find criminals who alluded their crimes for some time. It becomes apparent that these issues need to brought the attention of the public, if the people are comfortable with a little less privacy in order for others to receive justice. Just as Peter Neufeld said “There is a whole generation that says, ‘I don’t really care about privacy,” making it clear that a vast majority of people don't mind the invasion.
This article was really interesting and informative to read, It was interesting to see the massive effect that everyday easy DNA kits have the capability of connecting a variety of people together, and in this case to a criminal. The author did a great job with adding quotes from outside sources on different perspectives of the matter. However if the author added more background information on the criminal, if he went into more depth with what he did exactly, it would have made for a stronger case.
2 comments:
Charlotte Dotson
Mr. Ippolito
September 8, 2019
Current Event 1
Kolata, Gina, and Heather Murphy. “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA,
and Experts Shudder.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Apr. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/health/dna-privacy-golden-state-killer-genealogy.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%2BScience&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection.
Unknown. “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder.” The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder, 1 Jan. 1970, bhscsi.blogspot.com/2018/04/catherine-faville-forensic-current.html.
For this current event, I read Catherine’s review of “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder”. Catherine began the review with sharing her own, well thought out opinion on this controversial issue. I thought she did a good job with this part because her argument made me rethink my own opinion on privacy concerns regarding DNA testing. Secondly, it was obvious from Catherine’s insightful critique and praise of the article that she had read it closely. After reading the article, I agree with both her crique and praise. Additionally, her paragraph explaing how this article relates to the larger world was particularly insighful and well-written. She did a great job connecting what some might view as a small issue to the larger context of crime and criminal justice.
One thing Catherine could have improved in this review would be her summary. She began the review with her own opinions, which though interesting, would have been better understood by the reader had Catherine included a brief overview of the content. Lastly, I think the review could be further improved if she had slightly elaborated on why particularly some people consider the application of DNA testing to crime unethical. She did a great job of explaining her own opinion, yet did not completely explain the views of the opposing side.
I thoroughly enjoyed both the article and Catherine’s review. I believe that in the coming years, this issue will become even more prevelant as more crimes are solved in a similar manner. It is difficult to determine in such situations what is more important, privacy or justice. On the one hand, I do want criminals guilty of violent crimes to be punished, yet it begs the question of how much information we, as citizens, are comortable with the government having acess to. There may come a day where rights to our own DNA privacy is minimal. In my opinion, if that day comes, people will look back on cases like these as the begining of the government overstepping their bounds.
Sarah Whitney
Mr. Ippolito
September 9, 2019
Current Event 1
Kolata, Gina, and Heather Murphy. “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Apr. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/04/27/health/dna-privacy-golden-state-killer-genealogy.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%2BScience&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection.
In this review of “The Golden State Killer Is Tracked Through a Thicket of DNA, and Experts Shudder.” by Gina Kolata has many positive attributes. First, Catherine accurately describes the topic of DNA and how ancestral websites can use it along with police to bring justice to suffering families. She did a good job describing this briefly while keeping the necessary information. Catherine then goes on to explain that many people question the morals behind catching criminals with DNA they don’t have rights to and whether or not the police had the rights to catch this man. She presents her argument clearly that even if it may invade privacy, the catching of this criminal was much more important. Lasty, the paragraph describing the relevance of this topic was really well thought out and clear.
Although Catherine did many things well, there were two things in which I believe she could have improved upon. First, I wish she would have included more quotes to give the reader a sense of the author’s views. Second, her criticism could have used a better explanation to better help the author if they were to make any changes.
I found this article very interesting as I had not previously known that DNA databases were working with police in investigations nor did I know that there had been any success stories.
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