Western Australian Numbered Acts Western Australian Numbered Acts After section 50A
the following section is inserted —
“
50B. DNA evidentiary certificate
(1) In this
section —
“authorised officer” means the person
who holds the office prescribed for the purposes of this definition;
“business day” means a day that is not
a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday;
“DNA profile” means the result from
DNA analysis;
“examination” , of a thing, includes
testing the thing;
“forensic scientist” means a person,
or a person who holds an office, prescribed for the purposes of this
definition;
“hearing day” , for a criminal
proceeding, means the day fixed for the start of the trial of the proceeding;
“party” , to a criminal proceeding,
means the prosecutor or a person charged in the proceeding;
“thing” includes anything in or on or
otherwise attached to the thing.
(2) This section
applies to a criminal proceeding.
(3) A certificate
purporting to be signed by a forensic scientist and stating any of the
following matters is evidence of the matter —
(a) that
a stated thing was received at a stated laboratory on a stated day;
(b) that
the thing was examined at the laboratory on a stated day or between stated
days;
(c) that
a DNA profile was, or a stated number of DNA profiles were, obtained from the
thing;
(d) that
a forensic scientist —
(i)
examined the laboratory’s records relating to the
receipt, storage and examination of the thing, including any examination of
the thing that was done by a person other than the forensic scientist; and
(ii)
confirms that the records indicate that all quality
assurance procedures for the receipt, storage and examination of the thing
that applied in the laboratory at the time the thing was examined were
complied with.
(4) If a party intends
to rely on the certificate, the party must —
(a) at
least 10 business days before the hearing day, give a copy of the certificate
to each other party; and
(b) at
the hearing, call the forensic scientist to give evidence, unless the parties
agree otherwise.
(5) If the authorised
officer receives a written request from a party for a copy of the
laboratory’s records relating to the receipt, storage and examination of
the thing, the authorised officer must give the party a copy of the records
within 7 business days after receiving the request.
(6) If a party intends
to dispute a matter stated in the certificate, the party must, at least 5
business days before the hearing day, give the authorised officer and each
other party written notice of the matter to be disputed.
(7) A party disputing
a matter stated in the certificate may, with the leave of the court, require
the party relying on the certificate to call any person involved in the
receipt, storage or examination of the thing to give evidence at the hearing.
(8) The court may give
leave only if satisfied —
(a) that
an irregularity may exist in relation to the receipt, storage or examination
of the thing about which the person to be called is able to give evidence; and
(b) that
it is in the interests of justice that the person be called to give evidence.
(9) Any equipment used
in examining the thing at the laboratory is taken to have given accurate
results in the absence of evidence to the contrary.
(10) A document
required to be given under this section may be given personally, by post or by
facsimile or another form of electronic communication.
(11) On application
made to it, the court may, before or after a time fixed under this section
expires, extend or abridge the time by an order fixing, extending or abridging
the time, whether or not the application is made before the time expires.
(12) The Governor may
make regulations for the purposes of the definitions of “authorised
officer” and “forensic scientist” in subsection (1).
”.
By Authority:
JOHN A. STRIJK, Government Printer