23 September 2013 Last updated at 21:59 ET By Phil Mackie Reporter, BBC Radio 5 live <\/p>\n
DNA samples taken from thousands of former prisoners could be destroyed if police lose a judicial review later. <\/p>\n
An ex-prisoner, referred to in court as R, argues that a police force's request to collect his DNA threatens arrest and infringes his human rights. <\/p>\n
Under Operation Nutmeg, DNA samples have been collected from prisoners who pre-date routine collection. <\/p>\n
Judges will decide if the force's approach was unlawful and if DNA collected in such a way can be kept. <\/p>\n
The police force at the centre of the case - which also cannot be named for legal reasons - was trying to collect the sample as part of Operation Nutmeg, a nationwide push to collect genetic material from people jailed for serious crimes before 1994. <\/p>\n
After that date, people convicted of serious crimes had DNA swabs routinely taken to add to the national database. <\/p>\n
The aim of the operation is to see if there is any match to unsolved crimes with DNA from the former prisoners. <\/p>\n
By July of this year, 6,204 samples had been taken under the scheme, with 111 being matched to crime scenes. <\/p>\n
R - who was jailed for manslaughter in the 1980s but after his release was only in trouble for a lesser, non-violent offence - argues that he has turned his life around since 2000. <\/p>\n
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Continued here: 23 September 2013 Last updated at 21:59 ET By Phil Mackie Reporter, BBC Radio 5 live DNA samples taken from thousands of former prisoners could be destroyed if police lose a judicial review later. An ex-prisoner, referred to in court as R, argues that a police force's request to collect his DNA threatens arrest and infringes his human rights Continue reading
\nPolice await DNA destruction ruling<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"