Fiches Belges

The identification of persons by samples is an essential tool of the technical and scientific police. It can be used in the context of a criminal investigation, a judicial investigation or the extrajudicial procedure for identifying deceased persons. Samples can be taken from the following persons : - Victims and witnesses - Victim and relatives of a serial or unsolved crime - Suspect for which there are serious and concordant evidence - Person definitively found guilty or not criminally responsible for an offence provided for in article 706-55 of the french criminal code of procedure - Missing person - Ascendants, descendants and collaterals to the 2nd and 3rd degree of a missing person - Trace of unknown origin - Unidentified corpse

• EU member states: Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order in criminal matters as transposed into the French Code of Criminal Procedure in Articles 694-15 to 694-50 replaces particularly the provisions of The European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 (and its two additional Protocols) and the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union of 29 May 2000 (and its Protocol of 16 October 2001) except for Ireland and Denmark. • non-EU countries: The European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959.

• On the basis of the Directive on EIO of 3 April 2014 : The investigating judge is competent to recognize and execute the EIO in respect of acts which can only be ordered or executed during the judicial investigation or which can only be executed with the authorization of the liberty and custody judge. In other cases, the public prosecutor territorially competent will recognize and execute the EIO. • On the basis of the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 and its additional Protocols, requests for mutual legal assistance are addressed by the requesting State to the Office of International Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters of the French Ministry of Justice. Nevertheless, the competent judicial authority of the requesting State can address the request for mutual legal assistance directly to the competent judicial authority of the required State (see above for the competent authority in France: public prosecutor or investigating judge that has territorial jurisdiction). NB: In accordance with the declaration made by France to the Second additional Protocol (2001) requests for legal mutual assistance related article 1 paragraph 3 of the Convention and requests for legal mutual assistance made by the competent authority of the requiting State that is not a judicial authority must be sent to the Ministry of Justice, Directorate of Criminal Affairs and Pardons.

• Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order: French. • European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959: A translation in French is not required (article 16) but it is nonetheless recommended that a translation be provided, in order to facilitate and expedite the execution of the request for assistance.

• Directive 2014/41/EU of 3 April 2014 on the European Investigation Order: The competent authority must execute it as soon as possible and at the latest within 90 days after the decision of recognition of the EIO. • European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959 : The requested State executes the request for mutual legal assistance as soon as possible (Art. 1 Second additional Protocol to the Convention of 20 April 1959). There is no deadline for the execution of requests for assistance in French criminal law. However, it is possible, in the body of the request, to ask for a deadline to be observed; such a deadline will, however, only be regarded as a general guide.

• Ascendants, descendants and collaterals to the 2nd and 3rd degree of a missing person: express written consent is required. • Relatives of the victims of a serial or unsolved crime: only if the victim's DNA could not be collected or if it is necessary to confirm identification.