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Chapter Law Content

Title: Police Power Exercise Act CH
Category: Ministry of the Interior(內政部)
Chapter 2 Identity Verification and Data Collection
Article 6
The police may verify the identity of the following people in public places or public-accessible places:
1. People who are reasonably suspected of having committed a crime or having the likelihood of committing a crime.
2. People, who according to the known facts, are believed to be aware of the crimes that has already been committed or is to be committed imminently.
3. People whose identity, according to the known facts, must be verified in order to prevent concrete hazards from endangering lives and physical safety of themselves or others.
4. People who stay in places where according to the known facts, there is a conspiracy to commit, prepare, or already committed serious crimes or where fugitives are being harbored.
5. People who have no permit for a temporary stay or residence and stay in places where a stay requires a permit.
6. People who pass through designated public places, roadways, and check points.
The designation stipulated in the subparagraph 6 of the preceding paragraph shall be made only when considered necessary to prevent crimes or deal with events that may effect major public safety or social order.The designation shall be determined by supervisors in charge.
The police may enter publicly-accessible places only during business hours and shall not arbitrarily obstruct business operations.
Article 7
To verify people's identities, the police in accordance with the provisions stipulated in the preceding article may take the following necessary measures:
1. Stop people, vehicles, ships, and other means of transportation.
2. Inquire the name, date of birth, birth place, nationality, residence, and national ID number.
3. Demand presentation of an individual’s ID card.
4. Frisk a person or check his/her belongings when there are clear indications that the person might be carrying objects that can be used to commit suicide or inflict injury on himself/ herself, or kill or injure others.
When it is absolutely impossible to verify a person’s identity by using the measures set forth in subparagraphs 2 and 3 of the preceding paragraph, the police may take the person to a police agency for further verification. The police shall not use coercive power unless there is resistance, and the duration of the verification shall not exceed three hours starting from the time the person is stopped. The police shall also immediately report the identity verification to the Duty Command Center and inform a relative, friend, or lawyer as requested by the person.
Article 8
The police may stop any form of transportation that poses a hazard or is likely to pose a hazard according to objective and reasonable judgment and utilize the following measures:
1. Require the driver or passengers to show their IDs, or verify their identities.
2. Check the Vehicle Identification Number, engine number or other identifiable features of the vehicle.
3. Require the driver to take a breathalyzer test.
When the police reasonably suspect that the driver or passenger of the means of transportation provided in the preceding paragraph will pose a hazard based on their unusual behavior, the police may order the person to exit the vehicle. When there are sufficient facts indicating the possibility that the person may commit a crime, the police may also search the vehicle.
Article 9
When the police have enough facts to believe that the actions of people who participate in assemblies, parades or other public events may endanger public safety or order, they may collect at the scene information about the participants in the event by videotape, recording or other technology tools. When it is impossible not to involve a third party during the said data collection process, the third party may be recorded as well.
Data collected in accordance with the provisions stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall be destroyed immediately after the relevant assemblies, demonstrations, or other public activities are over unless it must be kept for the investigation of crimes or other illegal acts.
Data preserved as per the provisions in paragraph 2 shall be destroyed no later than one year after they are needed unless they are required for cases that are being prosecuted but the judicial proceedings has yet to reach finality or cases involving violation of the Organized Crime Prevention Act.
Article 10
The police for the purpose of maintain public safety may coordinate with authorities concerned by installing CCTV cameras or utilizing existing recording equipment or other technology tools to collect data in public places or publicly-accessible places where crimes occur frequently or they believe crime is reasonably assumed to be likely to occur.
Data collected as per the provisions set forth in the preceding paragraph shall be destroyed no later than one year after they have been made unless they must be kept for the investigation of criminal suspects or illegal acts.
Article 11
The police may observe people in the following activities through visual inspection or technology tools, to collect data over the reasonably expected behaviors or life activities irrelevant to personal privacy or secrecy within a specified period of time that is deemed necessary and with the prior written approval of a police department chief in order to prevent crimes:
1. People who are believed on the basis of sufficient facts to be likely to commit a crime that is punishable by at least five years’ imprisonment.
2. People who are believed on the basis of sufficient facts to be likely involved in professional, habitual, syndicated, or organized crimes.
Each period of time stipulated in the preceding paragraph may not exceed one year but may be extended once at most when deemed necessary. When such data collection is no longer necessary, it must immediately cease.
Data collected as stipulated in paragraph 1 shall be destroyed immediately after the purpose is fulfilled unless the data must be kept for the investigation of criminal acts.
Article 12
To prevent hazards or crimes, the police may select a third party to secretly collect related data on someone who is believe to be engaged in acts that will endanger public safety, public order or individual lives, physical safety, freedom, reputation, or property or likely to violate criminal laws.
When considered necessary, the data collection stipulated in the preceding paragraph may be extended to people whom the party concerned has been in contact or has associated with.
The so-called third party stipulated in paragraph 1 refers to a person who is not a police officer but has been screened and selected by the police prior to working for the police at their own volition. The selected third party may receive compensation needed to pay for operating expenses but shall not be granted any title and credential or police powers derived from this Act or other laws and regulations. While collecting data secretly, the said third party may not violate any laws and regulations.
The Ministry of the Interior shall draft regulations governing the screening and selection, communication and deployment, training and assessment, data evaluation and other matters such third parties must adhere to.
Article 13
Selection of the third party to secretly collect data related to a specified person in accordance with the provisions prescribed in the proceeding article may be carried out after the police have identified the grounds and facts and obtained the approval of a police department or police precinct chief.
Once the data collection is completed, the police shall terminate the cooperative relationship with the third party. However, if new grounds and facts set forth in paragraph 1 of the preceding Article emerge and necessitate continued data collection, the cooperative relationship may be continued after approval is obtained.
When the data on the suspect or the facts that await verification are collected in accordance with paragraph 1 of the preceding article and are to be used as evidence in related legal proceedings, applicable procedural laws shall apply. If the third party is a witness, the provisions of the Witness Protection Act shall apply.
Article 14
The police may inform the following people to appear at a police agency through a verbal or written notice that states the grounds for the appearance:
1. People who are believed, based on the sufficient facts, to be able to provide the police with crucial information to prevent substantial danger or harm.
2. People who according to the known facts, shall be submitted to non-intrusive forensic tests to prevent tangible hazards.
Once the person notified to appear at the police agency as prescribed in the preceding paragraph arrives, the investigation or non-intrusive measures shall be conducted immediately.
Article 15
To maintain social order and prevent recidivism, the police may carry out periodic visits to the following persons who might pose a threat to social order:
1. People who committed homicide, robbery, , arson, sexual assault, extortion kidnapping for ransoms, theft, fraud, offenses against personal freedom, or organized crime and have served their sentences or have been released on parole.
2. Offenders under rehabilitation or who have served their sentences or are on parole for producing, transporting, selling, or possessing drugs or ammunition.
The period during which the visits as prescribed in the preceding paragraph are carried out is limited to three years after the person has served their sentences or was released on parole. For any person whose parole is revoked, the period of release on parole shall be excluded from the calculation.
The ways to visit people who might pose a threat to social order, or things that need to be checked during each visit, and the rules that regulate the visits shall be issued by the Ministry of the Interior.
Article 16
The police may transfer the personal information when requested by other agencies if such transfer is necessary and does not exceed the police’s authority. Upon police request, other agencies may also transfer to the police personal information they hold.
The agencies prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall be responsible for the accuracy of the personal data information they transfer.
Article 17
The data collected by the police in accordance with the provisions set forth in this Act shall be used within the statutory functions of the police and for the particular purpose of their collection unless otherwise specified by law.
Article 18
When the data legally collected by the police is no longer effective for the police to accomplish their mission, it shall be cancelled or destroyed unless the cancellation or destruction of the data will endanger an interest of the collection target that merits protection.
Data that shall be cancelled or destroyed shall not be transferred or used in ways that are harmful to the collection target.
Collected data shall be cancelled or destroyed within five years after it was created, unless otherwise specified by the law.