Business

Benefits
1. Reduced amount of medical resources needed to offer proper medical care. Since the entire chemistry of the human body is affected by genes, the possibility of current medical ills being cured or prevented with the use of gene-associated therapies is high. Gene information can be obtained from DNA database.

2. Considerable reduction in crime. DNA database would help to stop criminals in their tracks since it allows for possible matching of information obtained from the crime scenes and that of individual.

3. Reduction in government expenses. National DNA database gives enough information hence the size of police force can be reduced and by extension the criminal justice system.

4. Reduced occurrence of wrongful arrests and abuses of power carried out by police officers made possible by, valid information from a DNA database.

5. Reduced specter of guilt. Police officers have enough evidence to pinpoint the real criminals using information from the national DNA database.

6. Government resources saving. The reduction in crime that a national DNA database brings about can scrap off establishment of independent bodies whose duty is to ensure that abuses of power do not take place.

Problems
1. Abusing powers through access to a national DNA database whish provides a lot of information about individuals.

2. DNA database can be used to help some people - particularly some state employees - to indulge in criminal activity.

Who should be included in a national DNA database Should one be limited to convicted felons Explain your answer.

Criminals and their allies should be included in a national DNA database.
Yes. This is because keeping large numbers of innocent people on the database who are at times found at the crime scene may not increase the likelihood of solving crime by use of DNA. So much unnecessary data can cause wrong matches that should not have led to conviction in the first place, leading to incarceration of innocent people. According to Borovko, et al (2009) samples taken can also degrade hence loosing its usefulness and this can be a waste of time. Therefore the less information saved at the national DNA database, the more the precision in getting the real criminals.

How does CODIS work
CODIS  comes up with investigative leads using biological  evidence recovered from scenes where crime was committed and then making matches  among profiles in the forensic index. Computer software is used to automatically search across indexes (convicted offender index and forensic index) for a potential match.

How is it designed
CODIS have three-tiered hierarchical structure which consists of
LDIS (Local DNA Index System) where, DNA information originates from. Biological samples are taken at police departments and sheriffs offices.

SDIS (State DNA Index System). It provides a means for local crime labs within a state to exchange information.

NDIS (National DNA Index System). This allows for the exchange of DNA profiles on the broadest scale at the national level (Schneider, Martin, 2001).

What information does CODIS maintain
CODIS consist of the Convicted Offender Index and the Forensic Index, The Convicted Offender Index contains DNA profiles of individuals convicted of certain crime. While the Forensic Index contains DNA profiles developed from biological material found at crime-scenes such as blood, semen and saliva (Muller 2001).

Who is allowed to use CODIS
It is handled by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
How does CODIS aid criminal investigations
As posted by Martin (2004) DNA evidence can assist in bringing home the guilt, relieving the innocent or, liberating those wrongly convicted. It gives accurate information when the DNA is matched with the data collected at crime scenes hence provides for specific person identification. It can also stop the youth from engaging in crime since they can be caught in early stage.