Familial DNA analysis and criminal investigation: Usage, downsides and privacy concerns

• Published in: Forensic science international 2021-01, Vol.318, p.110576-110576, Article 110576
• Main Authors: Mateen, Rana Muhammad, Sabar, Muhammad Farooq, Hussain, Safdar, Parveen, Rukhsana, Hussain, Manzoor
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ancestry; Chromosomes, Human, Y; Continental Population Groups - genetics; Crime; Criminal investigation; Criminal investigations; Databases, Genetic; Deoxyribonucleic acid; DNA; DNA Fingerprinting - ethics; DNA Fingerprinting - legislation & jurisprudence; DNA fingerprints; DNA, Mitochondrial; Ethical issues; Ethnicity; Evidence; Familial DNA; Families & family life; Forensic Genetics - ethics; Forensic Genetics - legislation & jurisprudence; Forensic science; Forensic sciences; Gene loci; Genealogy; Genetic Privacy; Genetic testing; Genomes; Genotype; Humans; Judicial system; Medical ethics; Microsatellite Repeats; Minority & ethnic groups; Mitochondrial DNA; Pedigree; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Privacy; Sex crimes; Testing laboratories
• ISSN: 0379-0738; 1872-6283
• DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2020.110576

•Familial DNA analysis is a valuable tool for criminal investigation.•Strict compliance is necessary for the implementation of familial DNA analysis.•Ethical, legal and privacy concerns limit the wide usage of familial DNA analysis. Since the discovery of Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) capability in forensic investigation, it has been an important part of the criminal justice system. In most criminal cases DNA profile originating from evidence sample collected from the crime scene is compared with the DNA profile from the reference sample. However, when a reference sample is not available for comparison, familial DNA analysis can provide important investigation leads in a criminal investigation process by identifying an individual. Moreover, this analysis is also proving effective in the identification of ethnicity and ancestry of an individual. A number of different methodologies and software are being used for familial DNA analysis. This review describes the importance of familial DNA analysis, methodologies used for familial DNA searching and identification, and its advantages in forensic. Moreover, ethical, legal and social issues associated with familial DNA analysis have also been discussed along with future directions for the proper implementation of this technology.