DNA kits sent to Texas parents are not a response to Uvalde shooting, lawmaker says
As millions of parents in Texas are being sent DNA kits to identify their children in case of an emergency, one state lawmaker is refuting claims the program is in response to the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde.
The commencement of the National Child Identification Program in Texas falls nearly five months after 19 children and two teachers were killed during the Uvalde shooting. But the decision to pass out these tests, which some people oppose, was made in 2021.
“It has come to my attention that there is some confusion regarding the intent of the Child I.D. Kits current disseminated at schools,” state Sen. Donna Campbell said in a statement on Tuesday, Oct. 18. “The Child I.D. Kits for Safe Recovery Act was passed back in 2021 to provide aid in the reunification of missing and trafficked children. My hope is that these kids provide peace of mind to parents.”
As part of the act, the Texas Education Agency is required to provide the identification kits to school districts across the state for elementary- and middle school-aged children. Schools will pass out the kits to nearly 3.8 million children in Texas, KTRK reported.
It’s up to the parents to decide if they want to participate in the program, according to the Dallas Independent School District, which said Wednesday it recently began distributing the kits after receiving 92,400 of them.
The kit allows parents to store their child’s fingerprints and DNA, which could be used to locate a missing child. Parents will store the kit in their own homes.
An inkless fingerprint card, DNA collection site and applicator are enclosed in the kit, along with sections to store medical information about the child.
Kenny Hansmire, the CEO of the National Child Identification Program, said some people are questioning the program following the Uvalde shooting.
DNA samples were asked for following the Uvalde shooting as some of the victims were unidentifiable, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported. Those swabs helped investigators identify some of the childrens’ bodies.
“But the I.D. kit is for no other reason than to help parents locate a missing or a human trafficked child,” Hansmire told KWTX.
Despite the program not being directly linked to aid in school shootings, some people have expressed anger about the distribution of the kits.
“Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is choosing to send DNA kits to schools that parents can use to identify their children’s bodies AFTER they’ve been murdered rather than pass gun safety laws to proactively protect their lives,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.
“Yeah! Awesome! Let’s identify kids after they’ve been murdered instead of fixing issues that could ultimately prevent them from being murdered,” Brett Cross, whose 10-year-old son was killed in the Uvalde shooting, said on Twitter.
This story was originally published October 20, 2022 at 10:39 AM with the headline "DNA kits sent to Texas parents are not a response to Uvalde shooting, lawmaker says."