(a) General rule.--The Pennsylvania State Police shall continue to procure and file for record photographs, pictures, descriptions, fingerprints and such other information pertaining to all persons who have been convicted of a criminal offense within this Commonwealth and also of all well-known and habitual criminal offenders, wherever they may be procured.

(b) Cooperation from chief administrators.--Chief administrators of correctional facilities shall furnish to the Pennsylvania State Police, upon request, the fingerprints, photographs and description of any inmate.

(c) Fingerprinting and photographing authorized.--

(1) The Pennsylvania State Police, chief administrators of correctional facilities and all police officers within the several political subdivisions of this Commonwealth may take or cause to be taken the fingerprints or photographs of any person in custody, charged with the commission of a criminal offense or reasonably believed to be a fugitive from justice or a habitual criminal. This paragraph shall not apply to persons charged with a violation of 75 Pa.C.S. (relating to vehicles) which is punishable upon conviction in a summary proceeding unless the person is reasonably believed to be a fugitive from justice or a habitual criminal.

(2) The chiefs of law enforcement bureaus of all cities within this Commonwealth shall furnish daily to the Pennsylvania State Police copies of the fingerprints and, if possible, photographs of any person arrested within their jurisdiction charged with the commission of a criminal offense classified as a felony of any degree or who is reasonably believed to be a fugitive from justice or a habitual criminal. Such fingerprints shall be taken on forms furnished or approved by the Pennsylvania State Police.

(3) The Pennsylvania State Police, immediately upon the receipt of records under this subsection, shall compare them with those already in their files and, if they find that any person arrested has a previous criminal record or is a fugitive from justice, shall immediately inform the arresting officer or the officer having the inmate in charge of that fact.

(d) Cooperation outside this Commonwealth.--The Pennsylvania State Police shall cooperate with agencies of other states and of the United States having similar powers to develop and carry on a complete international, national and interstate system of criminal identification and investigation and also to furnish, upon request, any information in its possession concerning any person charged with a criminal offense to any court, district attorney or police officer of this Commonwealth, another state or the United States.

(e) District attorneys may employ experts.--

(1) District attorneys may employ experts on fingerprints to assist them in the investigation of pending cases and to testify at the trial thereof. The compensation of any such expert shall be fixed by the district attorney employing the expert, with the approval of the court of common pleas, and shall be paid from the county treasury upon warrant of the county commissioners in the usual manner.

(2) The district attorney of any county, the chief administrator of a county correctional institution, any expert employed by the district attorney or any other person designated by the district attorney may, upon the written order of the district attorney, take the fingerprints of any person confined in the county correctional institution for use in the identification of the inmate or for the inmate's trial.

(3) (i) The district attorneys of the several counties shall keep and arrange files of the fingerprints, taken under this section, of persons convicted of a criminal offense and shall destroy the fingerprints of all persons acquitted.

(ii) The files of fingerprints maintained by the district attorneys shall be open to the inspection of any other district attorney of this Commonwealth, or their representatives, or of the Pennsylvania State Police or any sheriff or law enforcement officer.

(f) Penalty.--

(1) Neglect or refusal of any person mentioned in this section to make the report required in this section, or to do or perform any other act required to be done or performed in connection with the operation of this section, shall constitute a summary offense.

(2) Such neglect or refusal shall also constitute malfeasance in office and subject such person to removal from office.

(3) Any person who removes, destroys or mutilates any of the records of the Pennsylvania State Police or of any district attorney shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.