Defence Forces (Evidence) Act 2022
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Disclosure of information | ||
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65. (1) Without prejudice to the Official Secrets Act 1963 and subject to section 71 , a person who has, or has had, access to information relating to a sample taken from a person under this Act, or information in the DNA (Military Police) Database System, shall not disclose the information except for one or more of the following purposes: | ||
(a) the purposes of the investigation of an offence against military law; | ||
(b) the purpose of a decision whether to institute proceedings for an offence against military law; | ||
(c) the purposes of court-martial proceedings; | ||
(d) the purpose of determining whether it is necessary to take a sample under this Act; | ||
(e) the purposes of the investigation or prosecution of a criminal offence, other than an offence against military law; | ||
(f) the purposes of an inquest under the Coroners Act 1962 ; | ||
(g) the purpose of making the information available to the person to whom the information relates; | ||
(h) the purposes of a review of an alleged miscarriage of justice under section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1993 ; | ||
(i) the purposes of administering the DNA (Military Police) Database System; | ||
(j) the purposes of the performance by the Data Protection Commission of its functions under the Data Protection Acts 1988 to 2018; | ||
(k) the purposes of civil proceedings regarding the manner in which a sample was taken under this Act; | ||
(l) the disclosure of the information to any person if the person to whom the information relates consents to its disclosure to that person; | ||
(m) the automated searching of certain DNA profiles in the DNA (Military Police) Database System in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 12 of the Act of 2014; | ||
(n) the automated comparison of certain DNA profiles in the DNA (Military Police) Database System with other DNA profiles in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 12 of the Act of 2014; | ||
(o) any other purpose that is prescribed. | ||
(2) A person subject to military law who intentionally or recklessly discloses information in contravention of this section commits an offence against military law and shall, where a charge under this section is disposed of summarily under section 177C or 178C of the Act of 1954, be liable to suffer any punishment awardable thereunder or, on conviction by court-martial, be liable to suffer imprisonment for— | ||
(a) any term not exceeding 2 years, or | ||
(b) any less punishment awardable by a court-martial. | ||
(3) A person not subject to military law who intentionally or recklessly discloses information in contravention of this section commits an offence and shall be liable— | ||
(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both, or | ||
(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, or both. |