French Code of Criminal Procedure
In forceThe national automated genetic fingerprint database, placed under the control of a magistrate, is intended to centralise genetic fingerprints from biological traces as well as the genetic fingerprints of persons convicted of one of the offences mentioned in article 706-55 with a view to facilitating the identification and investigation of the perpetrators of these offences. The genetic fingerprints of persons prosecuted for one of the offences mentioned in article 706-55 who have been found not criminally responsible pursuant to articles 706-120, 706-125, 706-129, 706-133 ou 706-134.
The genetic fingerprints of persons against whom there is serious or corroborating evidence making it likely that they have committed one of the offences referred to in Article 706-55 are also kept in this file on the decision of a judicial police officer acting either ex officio or at the request of the public prosecutor or investigating judge; this decision is noted in the record of the proceedings.
Judicial police officers may also, on their own initiative or at the request of the public prosecutor or investigating judge, have the fingerprint of any person against whom there are one or more plausible grounds for suspecting that he or she has committed one of the offences referred to in Article 706-55 matched against the data included in the file, without, however, that fingerprint being retained in the file.
The file provided for by this article shall also contain genetic fingerprints collected in the course of:
1° Procedures for investigating the cause of death or the cause of a disappearance provided for by the articles 74, 74-1 and 80-4 ;
2° Searches for identification purposes, provided for by Article 16-11 of the Civil Code, of deceased persons whose identity could not be established, with the exception of military personnel who died during an operation conducted by the armed forces or attached formations. However, genetic fingerprints collected in this context are recorded separately from other genetic fingerprints kept in the file. They are deleted on the instructions of the public prosecutor, acting either on his or her own initiative or at the request of the persons concerned, when the identification searches which justified their collection are terminated. The genetic fingerprints of ascendants, descendants and collaterals of persons whose identification is sought may only be kept in the file subject to the informed, express and written consent of the persons concerned.
The file also contains, by decision of the public prosecutor or investigating judge, for a period and under a deletion regime similar to those for traces in criminal files, the genetic fingerprints of victims of a crime mentioned in article 706-106-1 of this code, as well as, where it has not been possible to collect the victim's genetic fingerprint or where it is necessary to confirm his or her identification, the genetic fingerprints of the ascendants, descendants and collaterals of these victims, subject to their informed, express and written consent, and to their being able to ask the public prosecutor to delete their fingerprint from the file at any time.
Genetic fingerprints stored in this file may only be produced from non-coding deoxyribonucleic acid segments, with the exception of the segment corresponding to the sex marker.
A decree in the Council of State issued after consultation with the Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertés shall determine the terms and conditions for the application of this article. In particular, this decree specifies how long the recorded information is to be kept.
