N.J. parents file lawsuit challenging secret ‘baby blood stockpile’

A group of New Jersey parents filed a federal lawsuit Thursday challenging the state’s practice of keeping newborn babies’ blood samples for 23 years without their parents’ knowledge.

The state can use the blood however it wants, the lawsuit alleges, including selling it to third parties or providing it to police officers who don’t have a warrant requesting the blood.

“The state hasn’t had to justify or make known why they do this,” Rev. Hannah Lovaglio, one of the plaintiffs, told NJ Advance Media.