Australian Capital Territory Current Acts

CRIMES (FORENSIC PROCEDURES) ACT 2000 - SECT 80

    (1)     A volunteer, or a parent, guardian or close associate of a volunteer, gives informed consent in accordance with this section if the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate consents in the presence of an independent person who is not a police officer after a police officer informs the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate (orally or in writing) about the following:

        (a)     how the forensic procedure is to be carried out;

        (b)     that the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate may request that a doctor of the person's choice be present while an intimate forensic procedure (other than the taking of a dental impression) is carried out or a sample of saliva or sample by buccal swab is taken;

        (c)     if the forensic procedure is the taking of a dental impression, sample of saliva or sample by buccal swab—that the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate may request that a dentist of the person's choice be present while the procedure is carried out;

        (d)     that the volunteer is under no obligation to undergo the forensic procedure;

        (e)     that the forensic procedure may produce evidence that might be used in a court of law;

        (f)     that the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate may consult a lawyer of his or her choice before deciding whether or not to consent to the forensic procedure;

        (g)     that if the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate consents to the forensic procedure—

    (A)     the consent is also consent to the retention of forensic material taken and information obtained from analysis of the material; and

    (B)     the chief police officer and the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate may set a period for which the material or information may be retained, but it must then be destroyed unless a magistrate orders retention under section 84;

Note     See s 80A (Consent to retention of forensic material taken etc).

        (h)     that the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate may at any time withdraw consent to the volunteer's undergoing the forensic procedure or to retention of the forensic material taken or of information obtained from the analysis of the material;

              (i)     to the extent that they are relevant, the matters mentioned in subsection (3).

    (2)     However, an independent person must not be present as mentioned in subsection (1) if the volunteer, parent, guardian or close associate requests that an independent person not be present.

    (3)     The police officer must inform the volunteer, or parent, guardian or close associate of the volunteer, about the following:

        (a)     that information obtained from analysis of forensic material taken from a person under this part, and about the identity of the person, may be placed on the ACT DNA database, and that the information may be compared with information from the DNA databases of other participating jurisdictions;

        (b)     if the police officer intends the information to be placed on the volunteers (limited purposes) index—the purpose for which it is to be placed on the index, and that the information may be used only for that purpose;

        (c)     if the police officer intends the information to be placed on the volunteers (unlimited purposes) index—that the information may be used for a criminal investigation or any other purpose for which the ACT DNA database may be used;

Note     Pt 2.11 and pt 2.13 set out the purposes for which the database may be used.

        (d)     anything else prescribed by regulation.