The recent arrest of Lonnie Franklin Jr. may have finally brought an end to the serial killer who targeted African American women known as the Grim Sleeper. Franklin had avoided LAPD police for 25 years. Franklin is believed to be responsible for at least 11 murders and one attempted murder in Los Angeles since 1985. He was called the “Grim Sleeper” because he apparently took a 14-year break from his crimes from 1988 to 2002. Franklin has been charged with ten counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.

Franklin had several run-ins with the law over the years, yet his DNA was never logged into the criminal database. It was only after Franklin’s son 31 year old Christopher John Franklin was arrested and ordered to submit a DNA profile that the connection to Lonnie Franklin was made. Detectives used a piece of discarded pizza with Franklin’s DNA to make the link.

But Franklin’s arrest raises an interesting question regarding the use of DNA.

As James Fox, Professor of Criminology, Law, and Public Policy at Northeastern University, pointed out on his Crime and Punishment blog, “Privacy concerns raised by the use of familial DNA to crack the Grim Sleeper murders may create significant problems for the prosecution, should a defense attorney challenge the evidence. Laws permit the collection and storage of DNA data on certain convicted offenders for use in potentially linking future crimes to these same criminals, but not to their blood relatives who happen to have a similar genetic profile. This is not so much a concern for the slippery slope of privacy invasion, but a case of legal quicksand.”

DNA offender database policy is rapidly changing in states. All 50 require that convicted sex offenders provide a DNA sample, and states are increasingly expanding these policies. To date, 47 states require that all convicted felons provide a DNA sample to the state’s database. At least 15 states include certain misdemeanors among those who must provide a DNA sample. DNA databases in all states today are connected to the National DNA Index System, which is run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for federal and state information sharing.

While lawmakers and police agencies would like to expand the use and scope of the DNA database, the ACLU believes DNA data is different from photos and fingerprints of suspects and violates the U.S. Constitution’s ban against unreasonable government searches and seizures.

Last May the U.S. House overwhelmingly passed the “Katie Sepich Enhanced DNA Collection Act of 2010,” which increases federal funding for DNA testing. Sepich, 22, was raped, strangled and set on fire near her New Mexico home in 2003. DNA recovered was matched three years later to a career criminal when his DNA was entered into the national database after his conviction. This enhancement to “Katie’s Law” — under which DNA is tested in all felony arrests — would increase funding by 5 percent to 10 percent for states to conduct DNA testing and help reduce the backlog of DNA testing.

It would be a real tragedy to see Franklin’s case thrown out of court over issues of DNA collection if he is, in fact, a serial killer. Expect to see more lawsuits filed challenging the growing use of DNA as Congress and politicians seek to expand the scope of the database.