Decree No. 18/2002/NĐ-CP Issuing the Regulation on Management of Evidence Storage.

DECREE OF THE GOVERNMENT

Issuing the Regulation on Management of Evidence Storage.

 

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Criminal Procedure Code dated June 29, 1988 and amended and supplemented by the Laws amending and supplementing certain articles of the Criminal Procedure Code adopted by the National Assembly on June 30, 1990; December 22, 1992; June 9, 2000;

Pursuant to the Civil Procedure Law dated December 7, 1989, the Civil Enforcement Law dated April 26, 1993; the Economic Procedure Law dated March 29, 1994; the Labor Dispute Procedure Law dated April 20, 1996; the Administrative Procedure Law dated June 3, 1996 and the Law amending and supplementing certain articles of the Administrative Procedure Law dated December 25, 1998;

At the proposal of the Minister of Public Security, the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Justice,

 

DECREE:

Article 1. Now promulgates this Decree the "Regulation on Management of Evidence Storage" attached hereto.

Article 2This Decree shall take effect fifteen days from the date of signature. All previous regulations contrary to the Regulation issued with this Decree are hereby abolished.

Article 3. The Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Justice within their respective duties and powers shall monitor, inspect, and urge the implementation of this Decree.

Article 4. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairpersons of provincial and centrally governed city People's Committees are responsible for implementing this Decree.

 

REGULATIONS MANAGEMENT OF EVIDENCE STORAGE

(issued pursuant to Decree No. 18/2002/NĐ-CP dated February 18, 2002 of the Government).

 

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.This Regulation stipulates the work of managing, transferring, receiving, storing, and preserving evidence and other items and documents collected from criminal, civil, economic, administrative, labor, marriage and family cases (hereinafter referred to as cases) in order to serve investigative, prosecution, trial, and enforcement activities.

Article 2.

1. An evidence storage facility is a place where evidence, items, and other documents collected during the proceedings of cases are concentrated for storage and preservation, established and managed in accordance with the provisions of the law and this Regulation.

2. An evidence storage facility must ensure safety, dryness, ventilation, equipped with necessary and appropriate means; strictly managed, reasonably arranged to avoid confusion, loss, damage, environmental pollution, or harm to state property, organizations, individuals, and human life and health; facilitate the entry, exit, and preservation of evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility, effectively serving investigative, prosecution, trial, and enforcement activities.

Article 3.

1. An evidence storage facility is a place that receives, manages, and preserves evidence, items, and other documents collected from cases to serve investigative, prosecution, or trial and enforcement activities conducted by the same-level or higher-level investigating agencies or other agencies assigned to conduct some investigative activities and transfer them.

2. The management of evidence storage facilities must comply with relevant legal provisions; strictly prohibiting any acts of infringement, loss, damage, reduction, or destruction of the value, usability, or evidentiary value of evidence, items, and other documents collected from cases.

 

Chapter II

ORGANIZATION OF EVIDENCE STORAGE FACILITIES

Article 4.

1. Each county, district, town, provincial city police, each provincial police, central city police, and the Ministry of Public Security shall organize an evidence storage facility to serve criminal investigation and prosecution activities.

2. The Minister of Public Security shall specifically decide on the establishment and internal rules of evidence storage facilities within the People's Public Security.

Article 5.

1. Each military region (and equivalent level) and the Ministry of Defense shall organize an evidence storage facility to serve criminal investigation and prosecution activities and another evidence storage facility to serve trial and enforcement activities according to their authority within the People's Army.

2. The Minister of Defense shall specifically decide on the establishment and internal rules of evidence storage facilities within the People's Army.

Article 6.

1. Each county, district, town, provincial city enforcement agency and each provincial, central city enforcement agency shall organize an evidence storage facility to serve trial and enforcement activities.

2. The Minister of Justice shall specifically decide on the establishment and internal rules of evidence storage facilities under the enforcement agencies specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

 

Chapter III

REGIME OF MANAGEMENT OF EVIDENCE STORAGE FACILITIES

Article 7.

1. The head of the evidence storage facility has the following responsibilities and authorities:

a) Organizing the management and preservation of evidence and other items and documents in the storage facility in accordance with the provisions of the law;

b) Implementing the issuance and receipt of evidence, items, and other documents collected from cases according to the orders of the head of the case handling agency;

c) Reporting immediately to the evidence storage facility management agency when discovering loss, infringement, seizure, damage to evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility and witnessing the inspection of the scene by the competent authority;

d) Proposing the head of the evidence storage facility management agency to organize repairs, expansion, upgrading, and equipping necessary means for the evidence storage facility;

2. The head of the evidence storage facility management agency has the following responsibilities and authorities:

a) Monitoring, inspecting, supervising, and conducting other management activities related to the operation of the evidence storage facility;

b) Taking the lead and coordinating with relevant agencies and units to urgently move evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility to a safe location in case of natural disasters or threats to the safety of the evidence storage facility;

c) Requesting local authorities and people's armed forces to support the protection of the evidence storage facility if necessary;

d) Immediately notifying the investigative agency and the same-level Prosecution Office in cases where evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility are lost, infringed upon, or seized;

đ) Determining the cause of damage to evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility and reporting in writing to the case handling agency;

e) Proposing relevant agencies to guide and support personnel and professional expertise to preserve specialized evidence, items, and documents;

g) Requesting the case handling agency to promptly handle evidence, items, and other documents in the storage facility when there are signs of damage, risk of damage, or threat to the safety of the evidence storage facility, environment, or people and property.

3. The head of the evidence storage facility must be trained in necessary professional expertise and have good moral qualities.

4. Staff members of the evidence storage facility shall enjoy benefits and policiesin accordance with the general regulations of the State and their respective sectors.

Article 8.

1. All evidence items, objects, and other documents collected from cases must bekept and preserved in the evidence storage facility, except for the following cases:

a) Items that cannot be moved to the evidence storage facility and have been handedover to relevant agencies, organizations, or individuals responsible for preservationas prescribed by law.

b) Documents (such as papers, paintings, photos...) in small quantities, which havebeen filed into case files and handed over to case handlers for management underthe file work system;

c) Items that have been handed over to case handling agencies for managementduring the period of use to serve investigative, prosecution, trial activities;

d) Items such as money, gold, silver, precious metals, gemstones, antiques, weapons,explosives, flammable materials, toxic substances, radioactive materials, animals,plants transferred to specialized agencies for preservation;

đ) Items that deteriorate quickly and cannot be stored long-term in the evidencestorage facility (such as food supplies, fresh food, pharmaceuticals, medicinalmaterials...) shall be transferred to competent agencies to organize public auctionsin accordance with the law.

2. In cases where objective conditions prevent the immediate transfer of items asprescribed in points d and đ of Clause 1 of this Article, they must temporarily beentered into the evidence storage facility for preservation; once the objectiveconditions are resolved, they must be transferred immediately.

Article 9.

1. When it is necessary to enter or exit evidence items, objects, and other documentsof a case into or out of the storage facility to serve judicial proceedings or transferthem to another evidence storage facility, the head of the agency handling the casemust issue an entry order or an exit order. The entry order and exit order mustspecify the type, quantity, weight, characteristics of the evidence items, objects, andother documents to be entered or exited, the reasons, time of entry or exit; the nameof the person issuing or receiving the order must bear the signature of the head ofthe case handling agency and the seal of the case handling agency.

2. When handing over or receiving evidence items, objects, and other documents atthe evidence storage facility, the person handing over or receiving must present theentry order or exit order and personal identification documents. The evidence storagemanager can only enter or exit the storage facility when all required procedures anddocuments are complete.

3. The agency currently handling the case is responsible for organizing the transport,preservation, and protection of evidence items, objects, and other documentscollected from the case from one evidence storage facility to another or during thedirect use to serve investigation, prosecution, trial, and enforcement activities.

Article 10.

1. Staff members of the evidence storage facility are responsible for promptlyaccepting or transferring evidence items and objects, and other documents of casesfor timely service of investigative, prosecution, trial, and enforcement activities.

2. When entering or exiting evidence items, objects, and other documents of a caseinto the storage facility according to the order of the authorized person, the evidencestorage manager is responsible for:

a) Checking the entry order or exit order and other necessary procedures anddocuments of the person handing over or receiving;

b) Conducting weighing, measuring, counting, calculating, inspecting the conditionand characteristics of the evidence items, objects, and other documents collected andthe sealing status (if applicable);

c) Recording fully in the storage ledger and creating an entry receipt or exit receipt,specifying the hour, day, month, year of entry or exit; the name and position of theperson issuing the entry order or exit order and the person handing over or receiving;reasons for entry or exit; type, quantity, weight, characteristics of the evidenceitems, objects, and other documents belonging to the case, owner, lawful manager.The entry receipt or exit receipt is made in two copies, signed by both parties; eachparty retains one copy;

d) Creating a record regarding damage, shortage, or violation of sealing of evidenceitems, objects, and other documents being entered or exited from the storage facilityand reporting to the evidence storage management agency. The record is made in twocopies, signed by both parties; each party retains one copy.

Article 11.

1. The storage and preservation of evidence items, objects, and other documents inthe evidence storage facility must be carried out strictly in accordance with technicalprocedures as prescribed by principles and standards; labeling must be implementedto avoid confusion and facilitate inspection and supervision.

On June 25 and December 25 of each year, the evidence storage manager mustconduct an inventory of the storage facility and submit an inventory report to theevidence storage management agency.

Article 12.The budget for managing, constructing, repairing, expanding, upgrading theevidence storage facility, purchasing equipment and means, costs for preserving,transporting, delivering, and receiving evidence items, objects, and other documentsof cases in the evidence storage facility shall be guaranteed by the state budget andallocated annually to the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Defense, theMinistry of Justice, the Supreme People's Procuratorate. The Ministry of Finance isthe main body coordinating with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry ofDefense, the Ministry of Justice, the Supreme People's Procuratorate to monitor andurge the implementation of this provision.

 

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 13.

1. Any person violating these Regulations shall be subject to disciplinary action,administrative penalties, or criminal responsibility depending on the nature andseverity of the violation; if damage is caused, compensation must be provided inaccordance with the law.

2. Any person who achieves outstanding results in implementing these Regulationsshall be rewarded in accordance with the law.

Article 14.The Chairman of the People's Committee of provinces and centrally-administered cities is responsible for providing land and creating favorable conditions forthe construction and management of evidence storage facilities in their localities;directing relevant agencies in the locality to cooperate and ensure security andsafety for the evidence storage facility.

Article 15.Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-affiliatedagencies, Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities are responsible for implementing and enforcing these Regulations./.