New South Wales Consolidated Acts

CRIMES (FORENSIC PROCEDURES) ACT 2000 - SECT 109

109 Disclosure of information

(1) A person who has access:

(a) to any information stored on the DNA database system, or

(b) to any other information revealed by a forensic procedure carried out on a suspect, offender or volunteer,

must not disclose that information except as provided by this section.

(2) A person may only disclose information stored on the DNA database system for one or more of the following purposes:

(a) the purposes of forensic comparison in the course of a criminal investigation by a police officer or other person prescribed by the regulations,

(b) the purposes of making the information available, in accordance with the regulations, to the person to whom the information relates,

(c) the purposes of administering the DNA database system,

(c1) the purposes of any arrangement of the kind referred to in section 97,

(d) the purposes of any other arrangement entered into between the State and another State or Territory or the Commonwealth for the provision of access to information contained in the DNA database system by law enforcement officers or by any other persons prescribed by the regulations,

(e) the purposes of a review, or inquiry into, a conviction or sentence under Part 7 of the Crimes (Appeal and Review) Act 2001 ,

(f) the purposes of an investigation of a complaint by the Privacy Commissioner,

(f1) the purposes of informing a person who volunteered to undergo a forensic procedure for the purposes of placing information obtained from the analysis of the person’s forensic material on the missing persons index:

(i) that the DNA profile of the person matches a DNA profile on an index of the DNA database system, and

(ii) that the DNA profile of a missing blood relative of the person matches a DNA profile on an index of the DNA database system,

(g) any other purpose prescribed by the regulations.

(3) A person may only disclose information revealed by the carrying out of a forensic procedure on a suspect, offender or volunteer:

(a) if the person is the suspect, offender or volunteer to whom the information relates, or

(b) if the information is already publicly known, or

(c) in accordance with any other provision of this Act, or

(d) in accordance with the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 1987 , or the Extradition Act 1988 , of the Commonwealth, or

(e) for the purposes of the investigation of any offence or offences generally, or

(f) for the purpose of a decision whether to institute proceedings for an offence, or

(g) for the purpose of proceedings for any offence, or

(h) for the purpose of a coronial inquest or inquiry, or

(i) for the purpose of civil proceedings (including proceedings under Part 9 of the Police Act 1990 ) that relate to the way in which the procedure was carried out, or

(j) for the purpose of the suspect’s, offender’s or volunteer’s medical treatment, or

(k) for the purpose of the medical treatment of a victim of an offence that there are reasonable grounds to believe was committed by the suspect, or

(l) if the suspect, offender or volunteer consents in writing to the disclosure, or

(m) for the purposes of the investigation of complaints about the conduct of police officers under Part 8A of the Police Act 1990 , or

(n) for the purposes of scrutiny by the Ombudsman under section 121, or

(o) for any other purpose prescribed by the regulations.

(4) This section does not apply in relation to information that cannot be used to discover the identity of any person.

(5) A person:

(a) whose conduct gives rise to the disclosure of information in contravention of this section, and

(b) who intends or is reckless as to the disclosure,

is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: 100 penalty units or imprisonment for 2 years, or both.