ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a historical and sociological analysis of the evolution of forensic genetics applied to the governance of crime since the late 1980s. The manifold developments in DNA profiling techniques, as well as the creation and expansion of criminal DNA databases, are illustrated with empirical examples of the uses given to forensic genetic techniques in different parts of the world, such as Europe, the United States, and mainland China. The numerous social, ethical, and political concerns and contentions pertaining to forensic DNA profiling and databasing are situated at the intersection between science, civic and human rights, and relationships between citizens and the state. Such social relations are historically and culturally contingent and situated in local and national contexts. Therefore, the benefits or risks of technology for social order are never obvious, ubiquitous, and unquestionable. At the same time, genetic surveillance for the governance of crime is never ethically or politically neutral.
