Blood and Justice: Arizona State U. Settles Indians’ Lawsuit Over Medical Samples

Arizona State University has settled a long-running lawsuit over blood samples that its researchers collected from members of the Havasupai tribe, according to reports by the Associated Press and The New York Times. The plaintiffs alleged that university-affiliated researchers had obtained permission to use the blood samples only for a short-term diabetes study in the early 1990s, but actually kept the samples for many years and used them in genetic research that had nothing to do with diabetes. Legal scholars have closely followed the lawsuit as a test case for medical volunteers’ control over the use of their genetic materials. The lawsuit had sought $50-million, but under the settlement the university will make only a $700,000 payment. It will also return the blood samples and provide other assistance to the Havasupai.