Police have no right to keep the DNA of innocents (From Knutsford Guardian)

Police have no right to keep the DNA of innocents

11:20am Tuesday 2nd February 2010

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CHESHIRE Police has added the DNA profile of 1,506 innocent individuals since the European Court of Human Rights ruled this was illegal, in December 2008.

This is equivalent to four people a day who have done nothing wrong being treated as half-guilty. During the same time, it failed to remove one single innocent person from its records.

Despite this Labour Government’s promise to obey the court’s ruling, it is also guilty of at the least neglect.

These records can be kept by the police for up to six years.

This is part of a wider infringement of civil liberties instituted by this Government.

These profiles could be a reason for questioning people caught by the increasing surveillance to which we are all subjected. It is easy to see how all this data could be misused when investigating crime .

Either you are innocent or guilty-there should be no half-way house.

PETER HIRST Lib Dem PPC for Congleton

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