The excellent campaigning organisation, No2ID which as the name explains, is campaigning against the Government's plans to enforce I.D. cards upon every person in the UK at enormous cost, has put out details, copied below, how people can instruct the police to remove their DNA from the police data-base if they have been arrerested but not convicted of a crime, as written about by Mark Thomas in the Guardian, Thursday 19th March, 2009. It might be a good idea to print off this posting and keep it to hand.
There is further info on the following websites, which currently provide the best guide to what people should do. The situation is still a bit uncertain in England and Wales, even though the European Court on Human Rights ruled last December (in the 'S and Marper' case) that retaining the DNA of someone uncharged or unconvicted was unlawful.
NO2ID, ORG and Genewatch are shortly to launch a stand-alone campaign website on this issue.
In terms of what people should do, see David Mery's 'Don't delay: Delete your DNA today'. You do not need a lawyer. What you need to do is to write to the chief constable of the force that arrested you requesting your DNA samples and profile to be destroyed.
You should include details that help identify you - such as details of the arrest that led to your DNA be taken, what was the outcome (NFA, acquitted, etc.) a reference to the European Court of Human Rights 'S and Marper' ruling, and - as existing guidelines still apply - any circumstance that may help the chief constable consider your case to be exceptional.
You will most likely receive an initial negative reply (see 'Three months on, you still can't get off the DNA database') - for some
examples of letters sent back recently by some forces), BUT DO REPLY BACK.
If the letter you receive looks like a generic reply, point out that under the existing guideline whether your case is considered exceptional enough should be decided on its individual merit. Another excellent resource is GeneWatch UK.
And, for the more legally-minded, Anna Fairclough's latest answer in Liberty's legal clinic about the NDNAD.
Guy Herbert
General Secretary, NO2ID
Box 412, 19-21 Crawford Street
LONDON
W1H 1PJ.
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