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11. General systems and procedures
  
  Article 65-Official Records  
65.1 Official Records  
  Once a document of official record is created in any branch of the Corrections System, it shall be deemed a permanent record and shall be required to be handed across to the Archives Unit once the document has expired in use, or after twenty four months of being created, whatever is sooner.  
  A document shall not be permitted to be held by any branch of the Correctional System any longer than twenty-four months unless is is deemed "classified" and requiring certain security clearance. In such cases, the document may be held in trust for a further six (6) years before being required to be handed across to the secure archives of Corrections.  
65.2 Non destruction of documents  
  It shall be considered a crime to destroy any document officially created within the organisation of the Correctional System. Once created, all documents must be categorized properly and secured until such time as they are required to be archived.  
  Furthermore, it shall be considered a crime for any elected or appointed official to seek to order subordinate staff to undertake such a request. Where such a request is made, it is the duty of the personnel to report such requests to the Justice Department immediately.  
65.3 Personal responsibility for documents  
  Where a person is the author of a document, it shall be their responsibility to ensure the proper safe keeping and protection of every authored document. Where a document is established as being missing, it shall be their their responsibility for such an omission, whether or not it can be established that a document has been deliberately destroyed.  
  It shall be a matter for the Justice Department to establish that sufficient circumstantial or physical evidence exists in such cases for criminal proceedings to be issued against such an officer.  
  No defence shall be permitted in the course of any trial for destruction of official documents that an order for such actions was given as it is already established that upon immediately receiving such an order an official is obliged to report such an incident. Failure or omission to report such an incident immediately eliminates the right to use such a defence as null and void.  
     
 
 

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