DNA Profiling
The Interpol DNA Monitoring Expert Group

	Role
	Terms of reference
	Background

Role

The main reference source for the Interpol DNA Unit is the external Interpol DNA Monitoring Expert Group (MEG). The MEG acts as an advisory board and provides expert guidance and direction for the Interpol DNA policies and projects. The MEG members consist of 10-12 senior experts in the fields of forensic science and law enforcement and are drawn from member states across the five Interpol regions.

The MEG examines the contemporary field applications of DNA profiling as an investigative tool and makes recommendations on the use of DNA in criminal investigations with a view to promoting the worldwide use of this technique.

To date, the following member states have been represented in the MEG: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, China, France, India, Norway, South Africa, Spain, United Kingdom and the USA.

A policy on membership renewal has been put in place in order to increase the level of member state representation while maintaining a small effective working group. A rotating system therefore takes place every year to allow long serving candidates to be replaced by new candidates. All members of the group are members of other national or transnational DNA working groups. This enables co-operation with other DNA expert groups in which the Interpol DNA MEG members can represent Interpol.

Terms of reference

The Interpol DNA MEG addresses the following points:

• Investigation of crimes and incidents
  • Intelligence screens
  • Victim identification
  • Missing persons
    
    
• Establishing protocols for the application of DNA
  • Compatibility
  • Guidelines for quality assurance
  • Use of external proficiency testing
    
    
• Databasing
  • Data sharing and searching of profiles
  • Privacy
    
    
• Providing information
  • General awareness of social, privacy and ethical issues
  • Scientific
  • Scene of crime
  • Legal
    
    
• Providing assistance and support to developing countries for the expansion of DNA applications.
  
  
• Widening co-operation with law enforcement agencies, international leading societies and institutions dealing with or working on DNA profiling

Through these terms of reference, the objective of the group is to act as an international point of reference facilitating the use of DNA profiling.

Background

The 67th General Assembly Session (Cairo, 1998) recommended that the European Working Group on DNA Profiling should become a global one responsible for providing recommendations on the use and promotion of DNA profiling in criminal investigations (Resolution AGN/67/RES/8). The European Working Group on DNA Profiling was originally established in 1996 to provide a forum where European experts on DNA profiling could meet to set up guidelines and recommendations with a view to standardizing DNA profiling in Europe.

The Interpol European Working Party's recommendations were that:

• Member countries should use DNA profiling as a tool for criminal investigations and establish their own national DNA databases respecting the guidelines set out by the Interpol European Working Party;
• DNA databases of reference samples and crime scene stains should be as comprehensive as possible in order to ensure maximum efficiency in terms of investigative requirements;
• Countries should adhere to the Interpol standards for sampling, evidence collection and storage (as proposed by the ENFSI Working Group on Scene of Crime);
• Countries should reconsider their scene of crime strategy to be aware of potential DNA sources;
• All institutions involved in the chain of evidence regarding DNA profiling (police, forensic laboratory, prosecution) should implement a quality assurance system accredited by a national accreditation body;
• Countries should exchange DNA profiles via Interpol channels to assure the widest possible international co-operation in criminal investigations, with due respect for national legislation;
• Countries should develop an effective national strategy to ensure the creation and continuing success of their national DNA databases;
• Further developments in this dynamically changing field should be periodically monitored by a Monitoring Expert Group; the group should be composed of both scientists and law enforcement representatives and should provide an update for the European Regional Conference every two years;
• An international DNA users' group conference should be organized by the expert monitoring group under the auspices of Interpol;
• The work performed by the Interpol European Working Party on DNA Profiling should be brought to the attention of all member countries by presenting it to the General Assembly; other regions should be encouraged, by a General Assembly resolution, to join the process of standardization of DNA profiling;
• The Final Report should be brought to the attention of the widest possible range of scientific and law enforcement institutions playing any role in DNA profiling, and to any others who might benefit from its use.

Following the creation of the Interpol DNA Monitoring Expert Group, this Final Report has now become the Interpol DNA Handbook on DNA Data Exchange and Practice.

Updated June 2003