Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Act 2000 - NSW Ombudsman - NSW ...

Recommendations 72
NSW Police, in addition to the information currently included in its annual report on the number of cold links
and person DNA tests undertaken, include information on:
a. how many DNA samples have been analysed (including person samples and crime scene samples)
b. how many profiles are on the database
c. the results of analysis
d. how many samples have been rejected and the reasons for this
e. how many samples are submitted to the National DNA database (NCIDD) when it becomes operational,
and
f. how many matches are made on the National DNA database (NCIDD) when it becomes operational.
Recommendations 73
NSW Police commence recording how many non DNA forensic procedures are undertaken by type and the
results achieved following these procedures.
NSW Health supports recommendations 69 to 71 in principle. DAL does not issue an Annual Report, but NSW Health
has advised it will liaise with NSW Police to consider the best method for conveying this information to the public. 973
NSW Police has indicated it supports recommendations 69 to 72. It supports recommendation 73 in principle, but
noted that its implementation would require amendments to its computer system. 974
10.6.7. Tracking DNA samples through the system
In our statement of provisional findings, we recommended that DAL make changes to its case management system,
so that each case can be tracked from its receipt, to DAL beginning its analysis, to DAL completing its analysis (and
advising police of the result), to DAL finalising its analysis (and providing its analysis report to police). In its response,
DAL advised that it already does this.
Our preliminary recommendation stemmed from DAL’s inability to provide certain information we asked for in our
investigation notice. This included general information about the number of samples analysed during the review
period, which was crucial to establish the legislative basis for taking the samples in the first place – that there were
reasonable grounds for believing that taking the sample would confirm or disprove the suspect committed an offence.
We wanted to find out how many profiles obtained from suspects had been compared against the relevant crime
scene evidence, to compare this to the number of samples taken from suspects overall. DAL subsequently confirmed
that it could not provide any of this information. 975
The information DAL was unable to provide also included information about specific forensic procedures included in
our audit. For each procedure selected, we asked whether the person sample had been compared against a crime
scene sample or samples from the particular offence being investigated, whether an analysis report had been sent
to police, if so the results of the analysis and if not, the expected date a result would be reportable to police. As
discussed above, DAL was unable to identify the relevant case for 27 of the DNA samples taken from suspects, either
because the profile had been deleted and no record had been kept; police did not submit any exhibits from the crime
scene so no case number was allocated; or police did not advise DAL of the relevant COPS Event number.
We anticipate that these problems will be adequately addressed through the measures discussed elsewhere in this
report. In particular, DAL now keeps records of profiles which have been deleted. Further, DAL has agreed, following
our investigation, to record a result for each suspect sample submitted, when it has been compared to the relevant
crime scene evidence. 976 In addition, we have recommended DAL should only accept DNA samples from suspects
and volunteers where there are sufficient details enabling DAL to identify the case to which the sample belongs
(Recommendation 60).
NSW Ombudsman
DNA sampling and other forensic procedures conducted on suspects and volunteers under the Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Act 2000 201