A Misdemeanor “Arising out of the same set of circumstances” as a charged felony Authorizes Submission of DNA Examplar.

State v. Johnson, Jr., Minn.Ct.App., 01/26/2010.  The state initially charged Mr. Johnson with felony domestic assault by strangulation and misdemeanor fifth degree assault.  He pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor in exchange for dismissal of the felony charge.  He objected to being required to submit a DNA exemplar because he had not been convicted of a felony. 

The statute, Minn.Stat. 609.117, subd. 1(1) says that an offender has to submit a DNA sample when the district court “sentences a person charged with committing or attempting to commit a felony offense and the person is convicted of that offense or of any offense arising out of the same set of circumstances.”

Mr. Johnson complained that requiring a DNA sample in a misdemeanor conviction violates the fourth amendment and its state counterpart.  The appellate court concludes that collection of DNA from non-felons is not unconstitutional, and that the state’s interest in DNA collection outweigh what the court characterizes as a “minimal intrusion” of DNA collection and the reduced privacy expectation held by an offender convicted of a misdemeanor that arose from the same set of circumstances as a charged felony.