Criminal Justice Act, 1994
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Search, etc. for material relevant to investigation outside State. |
55.—(1) The Government may by order designate countries in relation to which this section shall apply. | |
(2) Section 63 of this Act shall have effect as if references in that section to drug trafficking or an offence in respect of which a confiscation order might be made under section 9 of this Act included any conduct which is an offence under the law of a country or territory outside the State and would constitute drug trafficking or an offence in respect of which a confiscation order might be made under section 9 of this Act if it had occurred in the State. | ||
(3) If, on an application made by the Director of Public Prosecutions or by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent, a judge of the District Court is satisfied that— | ||
(a) there are reasonable grounds for believing that an offence under the law of a country in relation to which this section applies has been committed, and | ||
(b) the conduct constituting that offence would, if it had occurred in the State, constitute an offence in respect of which the judge would have power under any enactment to issue a search warrant in relation to any place, | ||
then, subject to subsection (4) of this section, the judge shall have the same power to issue a search warrant authorising entry, search and seizure in relation to that place as he would have under the enactment in question in respect of an offence committed in the State. | ||
(4) No application for a warrant shall be made under this section except in pursuance of a direction given by the Minister in response to a request received by him from the government of a country in relation to which this section applies and made— | ||
(a) on behalf of a court or tribunal exercising criminal jurisdiction in the country in question or a prosecuting authority in that country, or | ||
(b) on behalf of any other authority in that country which appears to the Minister to be an appropriate authority for the purpose of this section, | ||
and any evidence seized by a member of the Garda Síochána by virtue of this section shall be furnished by him to the Minister for transmission to the government of the country concerned or, if that government so requests, to the court, tribunal or authority for which it has been obtained. | ||
(5) If in order to comply with the request it is necessary for any evidence to which this section applies to be accompanied by any certificate, affidavit or other verifying document, the member of the Garda Síochána shall also furnish for transmission such document of that nature as may be specified in the direction given by the Minister. | ||
(6) Where the evidence consists of a document, the original or copy shall be transmitted, and, where it consists of any other article, the article itself or a description, photograph or other representation of it shall be transmitted, as may be necessary in order to comply with the request. | ||
(7) Section 9 of the Criminal Law Act, 1976 , (including, in particular, the restriction in subsection (2) of that section relating to the seizure or retention of any document that was or may have been made for the purpose of legal advice) shall apply in relation to a search carried out under this section as it applies to a search such as is mentioned in that section save that for the reference in subsection (1) of the said section 9 to the retention of a thing for use as evidence in any criminal proceedings there shall be substituted a reference to its retention for transmission in accordance with this section. | ||
(8) The Government may amend or revoke an order made under this section including an order made under this subsection. | ||
(9) An order under subsection (1) or (8) of this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. | ||
(10) The Minister shall not give a direction under subsection (4) of this section unless provision is made by the law of the country or by arrangement with the appropriate authority thereof that any evidence that may be furnished in response to the request will not, without his consent, be used for any purpose other than that specified in the request and that when such evidence is no longer required for that purpose (or for any other purpose for which such consent has been obtained), it will be returned to him by the court, tribunal or authority that made the request under subsection (4) of this section unless he indicates that the evidence need not be returned. | ||
(11) In this section “evidence” includes documents and other articles. |