C48

Prospective affecting provision: powers of Military Police in relation to person in service custody specified by Defence Forces (Evidence) Act 2022 (16/2022), s. 34, not commenced as of date of revision.

F1[Other powers of members of Military Police in relation to person placed in service custody

34. (1) Where a person is placed in service custody pursuant to section 172 of the Act of 1954, a member of the Military Police may do one or more of the following:

(a) demand of him or her, his or her name, service number, rank and unit;

(b) search him or her or cause him or her to be searched;

(c) photograph him or her or cause him or her to be photographed;

(d) take, or cause to be taken, his or her fingerprints and palm prints;

(e) take, or cause to be taken, from the person a sample of a footprint or similar impression of any part of the person’s body other than a part of the hand or mouth;

(f) carry out, or cause to be carried out, any test designed for the purpose of ascertaining whether he or she has been in contact with any firearm (within the meaning of the Firearms Acts 1925 to 2009) or with any explosive and for that purpose take swabs from the person’s skin or samples of the person’s hair;

(g) require the person to permit a registered medical practitioner or a registered nurse to take a specimen of blood from him or her for analysis as to the concentration of alcohol or other drug in the blood;

(h) with the prior consent in writing of the person placed in service custody, cause to be taken by a registered dentist or a registered medical practitioner, a dental impression;

(i) seize and retain for testing anything that he or she has in his or her possession.

(2) A power conferred by subsection (1)(c) to (h) shall not be exercised unless a member of the Military Police not below the rank of captain authorises it.

(3) Subsection (1)(b) does not empower a member of the Military Police to require a person to remove his or her underclothing, except where such member, with reasonable cause, suspects that he or she has concealed on his or her person a controlled drug (within the meaning of section 2 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 ) or an explosive and a member of the Military Police not below the rank of captain so authorises.

(4) In this section, “explosive” means an explosive within the meaning of the Explosives Act 1875 and any other substance or thing that is an explosive substance within the meaning of the Explosive Substances Act 1883.]