Police keeping drink-driver’s DNA breached his rights, Human Rights Court rules
UK police who indefinitely retained in their records the DNA profile of a man convicted of drink-driving breached his human rights, Strasbourg judges have ruled.
Gaughran had complained that the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s continued retention of his DNA profile (the digital record of his DNA sample), fingerprints and a photograph was a breach of his privacy.
Gaughran was arrested for drink-driving in 2008 and pleaded guilty at Newry magistrates court. He was disqualified from driving for a year.
The judges said Gaughran’s biometric data had been held without reference to the severity of his offence. The UK’s regulations failed to strike a fair balance between competing public and private interests, the ECHR concluded.
Source: Police keeping drink-driver’s DNA breached his rights, judges rule | UK news | The Guardian
