To follow on from the blogpost below, over on the Guardian's Data Blog they have pulled off all the information on DNA sample retention from the National Police Improvement Agency.
The figures are broken down by Regional Police forces and crime/DNA retention per 1000 people, which all makes for some very interesting conclusions.
- The Metropolitan Police hold nearly 855,000 DNA profiles, or 17% of all the profiles on the database. However this actually only accounts for 113 profiles per 1000 people, whereas the area experiences 112 crimes per 1000 people.
- Perhaps more revealing is the fact that West Midlands Police hold nearly 228,000 profiles, or 118 profiles per 1000 people, and Northumbria Police hold 105,000 profiles at a rate of 125 profiles per 1000 people; when they experience just 87 and 75 crimes per 1000 people respectively.
- To put that in context, Northumbria Police might be collecting 50 more DNA profiles per 1000 people than are actually causing crime. Multiply that by their population of 1.4 million, and that means that in 2008/09 Northumbria Police could have collected over 50,000 DNA samples from completely innocent people.
Have a play with the data over at the Guardian blog and tell us what you come with!
By Dylan Sharpe
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