God Backs Hacker in DNA Dispute

The genesis of hacker Adrian Lamo's refusal to give the FBI a blood sample for DNA sequencing is, well ... Genesis.

Lamo cites the Good Book repeatedly in a court filing this week, and even seems to borrow the prose style of his source material in his sworn affidavit, which makes the point that he offered his probation officer DNA samples in less liquid form.

I am not an unreasonable man. I understand that we live in modern times, and that I am called on to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's. I offer up my hair follicles, my cheek swabs in the interests of justice. To the very hand of the probation office I offered an envelope with my hair; to the same hand I offered to pluck a hair from my brow and to clip the nails from my fingers. The Book of Genesis leaves unambiguous this matter. Therein, those who would spill the blood of man are rebuked as follows: "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man." Genesis 9:6 (New International Version). Under this admonition, not only would I be blinding myself to the direct instructions of scripture by shedding blood, but I would similarly be casting whomever facilitated this act into sin, multiplying my culpability.

Neither is this a sole warning, though a lone warning in scripture would carry no less weight than a multitude. When Cain slew Abel, the first words the Lord gave to him were "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground." Cain had not only killed, but he had spilled blood, and done so in sin, and this was first and foremost in the Lord's rebuke to Cain.

To the contrary, the scripture is replete with references to the Lord calling for blood to be put to use for His own purposes. Clearly, while blood may flow, this is reserved for the Lord to decree, and not for His servants.

Now 18 months into a two-year probation sentence for hacking The New York Times, Lamo is known for a string of brazen, mostly-harmless hacks against large companies carried out from 2001-2004, in which he openly took credit for the intrusions.

In May, Lamo's probation officer asked the court to send the hacker to jail after Lamo declined to give blood for the FBI's DNA database, as required of all recently-convicted federal felons under the 2004 Justice for All Act.

In Monday's court filing, Lamo's attorney, federal public defender Mary French, argues that the Supreme Court has explicitly left open the question of whether religious beliefs can form the basis of refusing to give blood when alternative means of collection are available. French urges US District Court judge Frank Damrell to exempt Lamo from the sampling entirely, or to order his probation officer to accept some other biological product in lieu of blood.

Lamo is free on his own recognizance pending a July 17 court hearing in Sacramento, California.