Science Can Erase Memories

[From article]
Scientists have zapped an electrical current to people's brains to erase distressing memories, part of an ambitious quest to better treat ailments such as mental trauma, psychiatric disorders and drug addiction.
[. . .]
The experiment recalls the plot of the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," where an estranged couple erases memories of each other.
[. . .]
Their test subjects were 39 patients who were undergoing electroconvulsive therapy, for severe depression. In ECT treatment, patients get a muscle relaxant and an anesthetic and an electrical current is passed to part of their brains, triggering a brief seizure that can help treat the depression. It isn't clear how the technique works: Some scientists have suggested it changes the pattern of blood flow or metabolism in the brain, while others believe it releases certain chemicals in the brain that battle the depression.

So will this technique be available to defense attorneys who want to eliminate memories of witnesses? Who will regulate this technology? What I love about scientists who explore manipulating the minds of men, is that they seem to lack any common sense and any historical perspective. No matter what technology was discovered, invented, it is always found to be useful for crimes and terrorism. What is it that makes these geniuses unable to see what evil can be done with what they are doing? 

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304866904579270390834135678

In a Test, Unwanted Memories Are Erased
It Is Unclear Whether the Disappearance Is Permanent.
By GAUTAM NAIK
Updated Dec. 22, 2013 6:54 p.m. ET