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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Trumping Communitarianism: Crime Control And Forensic Dna Typing And Databasing In Singapore, Victor Toom
Trumping Communitarianism: Crime Control And Forensic Dna Typing And Databasing In Singapore, Victor Toom
victor toom
Liberalism and communitarianism have figured prominently in discussions of how to govern forensic DNA practices (forensic DNA typing and databasing). Despite the prominence of these two political philosophies and their underlying values, no studies have looked at the governance of forensic DNA practices in a nondemocratic country governed by a communitarian logic. To fill this lacuna in the literature, this article considers Singapore as an authoritarian state governed by a communitarian philosophy. The article highlights basic innovations and technologies of forensic DNA practices and articulates a liberal democratic version of “biolegality” as described by Michael Lynch and Ruth McNally. It …
Hidden In Full Sight: Kinship, Science And The Law In The Aftermath Of The Srebrenica Genocide, Erica Haimes, Victor Toom
Hidden In Full Sight: Kinship, Science And The Law In The Aftermath Of The Srebrenica Genocide, Erica Haimes, Victor Toom
victor toom
Terms such as “relationship testing,” “familial searching” and “kinship analysis” figure prominently in professional practices of disaster victim identification (DVI). However, despite the dependence of those identification technologies on DNA samples from people who might be related to the dead and despite also the prominence of the notion of “relatedness” as a device for identifying the dead, the concepts of “relatedness” and “kinship” remain elusive both in practice and in analyses of the social and ethical aspects of DVI by DNA; they are hidden in full sight. In this article, we wish to bring kinship more to the fore. We …
Performing The Union: The Prüm Decision And The European Dream, Barbara Prainsack, Victor Toom
Performing The Union: The Prüm Decision And The European Dream, Barbara Prainsack, Victor Toom
victor toom
In 2005, seven European countries signed the so-called Prüm Treaty to increase transnational collaboration in combating international crime, terrorism and illegal immigration. Three years later, the Treaty was adopted into EU law. EU member countries were now obliged to have systems in place to allow authorities of other member states access to nationally held data on DNA, fingerprints, and vehicles by August 2011. In this paper, we discuss the conditions of possibility for the Prüm network to emerge, and argue that rather than a linear ascent towards technological and political convergence and harmonisation, the (hi)story of Prüm is heterogeneous and …
Bodies Of Science And Law: Forensic Dna Profiling, Biological Bodies, And Biopower, Victor Toom
Bodies Of Science And Law: Forensic Dna Profiling, Biological Bodies, And Biopower, Victor Toom
victor toom
How is jurisdiction transferred from an individual's biological body to agents of power such as the police, public prosecutors, and the judiciary, and what happens to these biological bodies when transformed from private into public objects? These questions are examined by analysing bodies situated at the intersection of science and law. More specifically, the transformation of ‘private bodies’ into ‘public bodies’ is analysed by going into the details of forensic DNA profiling in the Dutch jurisdiction. It will be argued that various ‘forensic genetic practices’ enact different forensic genetic bodies'. These enacted forensic genetic bodies are connected with various infringements …
Bracketing Off Population Does Not Advance Ethical Reflection On Evcs: A Reply To Kayser And Schneider, Amade M'Charek, Victor Toom, Barbara Prainsack
Bracketing Off Population Does Not Advance Ethical Reflection On Evcs: A Reply To Kayser And Schneider, Amade M'Charek, Victor Toom, Barbara Prainsack
victor toom
In a recent contribution to this journal, Kayser and Schneider reviewed the relevance of external visible characteristics (EVCs) for criminal investigation. Their aim was to broaden the debate about the scientific, legal, and ethical dimensions of the use of EVCs for criminal investigation, which will help to achieve a firm legal basis for the application of EVCs eventually. While we applaud Kayser’s and Schneider’s overall very thoughtful and nuanced discussion of this topic, we were surprised to read that they suggest that a discussion of ‘the challenges of using problematic definitions of populations [. . .] has to be kept …
A Comment On The Hill–Turney Exchange: From Normative Antagonism To Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Martin Evison, Eleanor Graham, Erica Haimes, Jackie L Scully, Anika Ludwig, Chris Maguire, Victor Toom, Robin Williams
A Comment On The Hill–Turney Exchange: From Normative Antagonism To Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Martin Evison, Eleanor Graham, Erica Haimes, Jackie L Scully, Anika Ludwig, Chris Maguire, Victor Toom, Robin Williams
victor toom
A recent issue of NG&S included an exchange between Hill (2011) and Turney (2011) discussing an earlier paper on the use of DNA identification in the Australian bush fires disaster of 2009 (Turney, 2010). An editor’s introduction to the exchange solicited further observations on the issues raised by the two participants (Glasner, 2011). What follows is a response to that solicitation. It has been written jointly by individuals from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds (including forensic genetics, forensic anthropology, sociology, bioethics, and science & technology studies) located within two research centres (the Northumbria University Centre for Forensic Science (NCUFS); …
Forensic Dna Databases In England And The Netherlands: Governance, Structure And Performance Compared, Victor Toom
Forensic Dna Databases In England And The Netherlands: Governance, Structure And Performance Compared, Victor Toom
victor toom
How do liberal democracies govern forensic DNA databasing? That is the question being asked in this contribution by focusing on the rules for inclusion of samples/profiles in DNA databases in England and Wales and the Netherlands. The two different modes of governance shall be evaluated by taking into account models and ideas in each society regarding the two imperatives of “crime control” and “due process.” Another question tentatively examined in this contribution is how these modes of governance impact on the performance of national DNA databases. The analysis provided in this article argues that, when compared with the English and …
The Prüm Regime: Situated Dis/Empowerment In Transnational Dna Profile Exchange, Barbara Prainsack, Victor Toom
The Prüm Regime: Situated Dis/Empowerment In Transnational Dna Profile Exchange, Barbara Prainsack, Victor Toom
victor toom
This paper takes critique of surveillance studies scholars of the shortcomings of the panoptic model for analysing contemporary systems of surveillance as a starting point. We argue that core conceptual tools, in conjunction with an under-conceptualization of agency, privilege a focus on the oppressive elements of surveillance. This often yields unsatisfying insights to why surveillance works, for whom, and at whose costs. We discuss the so-called Prüm regime, pertaining to transnational data exchange for forensic and police use in the EU, to illustrate how—by articulating instances of what we call ‘situated dis/empowerment’—agency can be better conceptualized, sharpening our gaze for …
Inquisitorial Forensic Dna Profiling In The Netherlands And The Expansion Of The Forensic Genetic Body, Victor Toom
Inquisitorial Forensic Dna Profiling In The Netherlands And The Expansion Of The Forensic Genetic Body, Victor Toom
victor toom
In Chapter 9 of the volume, Victor Toom describes how Dutch DNA profiling became governed through legal measures and the inquisitorial orientation of the Dutch legal system. Second, he describes the trajectory – the lines of development – of Dutch DNA profiling practices, outlining who and what has been involved in DNA profiling. This account provides insight into the strategies employed by various stakeholders to deploy DNA profiling extensively and routinely in volume crimes and to apply DNA profiling in the process of crime investigations. Toom’s analysis contributes to the understanding of how current DNA profiling practices were realised in …