The Evidentiary Value of DNA Profiling in Proving Adultery A Comparative Legal Study

Abstract

This research addresses the proof of adultery through DNA fingerprinting, considering scientific facts, and the resulting jurisprudential and legal issues concerning the admissibility of DNA fingerprinting in proving adultery and the extent to which the hadd punishment can be imposed based on it.

The research aims to analyze the modern scientific aspects related to the conclusive nature of its results, the legal classification of relying on DNA fingerprinting to prove adultery, and the extent to which the hadd punishment can be imposed based on it. The researcher adopted an inductive, analytical, and comparative approach by examining the scientific reality of DNA fingerprinting and the opinions of jurists.

The research concludes that adultery is a crime of consensual participation, that DNA fingerprinting is conclusive evidence, and that it can constitute valid evidence in proving adultery, especially when corroborating evidence is available. It also concludes that there is no necessary correlation between proving the crime and the imposition of the hadd punishment. While a legal impediment may prevent its application, this does not negate the criminal nature of the act committed. Justice dictates that none of those involved in a crime, after agreeing to it, should escape punishment once the crime is proven, even if the conditions for applying the prescribed punishment are not met. The research recommended the possibility of imposing a discretionary punishment, no less deterrent than the prescribed punishment, on those proven guilty of adultery through DNA testing, in consideration of the objectives of Islamic law in protecting honor and achieving general deterrence.