Scalia rejects the DNA search's identification rationale
Antonin ScaliaSupreme Court justice writing a dissent joined by Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Kagan
Scalia rejects the identification rationale, arguing that the DNA search sought evidence of unrelated crimes.
“The truth, known to Maryland and increasingly to the reader: this search had nothing to do with establishing King's identity.”
Original text
Where this statement fits
Maryland v. King: Supreme Court upholds DNA swabs of serious-offense arrestees, 5-4
In Maryland v. King, the Supreme Court upheld taking and analyzing a cheek-swab DNA sample after an arrest supported by probable cause for a serious offense and detention in custody. Justice Anthony Kennedy's majority treated the procedure as a reasonable part of booking and identification. Justice Antonin Scalia, joined by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, dissented. He argued that Maryland was searching for evidence of unrelated crimes, and that the identification rationale did not describe how the system operated.
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Original text
About this source
The Court upheld the specified serious-offense arrestee DNA procedure by 5-4. Scalia's dissent disputes its identification rationale.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The dissent describes the delay before King's sample was tested and matched.
After the quotation
It argues that the timing, database structure and statute contradict the majority's identification account.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to the DNA procedure, Scalia substantively rejects the search as unconstitutional crime investigation rather than merely objecting to a label.
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More from this case
Read the full caseKennedy upholds the Maryland arrestee DNA procedure
“the Court concludes that DNA identification of arrestees is a reasonable search that can be considered part of a routine booking procedure.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Scalia rejects the DNA search's identification rationale". First published: 2026-10-30. Last updated: 2026-10-30. https://disputeindex.com/events/7287-scalia-rejects-the-identification-rationale-arguing-that-the