Detention Flashcards
What are the police rankings?
- Constable
- Sergeant
- Inspectro
- Chief Inspector
- Superintendent
- Chief Superintendent
What must a police officer demonstrate for detention?
- Legal authority to exercise the power
- That the power has been exercised lawfully.
What must happen to a person arrested?
A person arrested must be taken to a police station as soon as practicable, unless their presence elsewhere is necessary for immediate investigations.
What is the requirement if a person is to be detained for more than 6 hours?
If it is anticipated that the person will be detained for more than 6 hours, they must be taken to a designated police station.
Otherwise, they can be taken to any police station
What is street bail?
Street bail allows a person arrested to be granted bail to attend a police station at a later date.
What happens after a detainee arrives at the police station?
The detainee will:
- See the custody officer
- Be informed of their rights
- Have certain non-intimate samples taken
- May speak to a solicitor
- May be interviewed (with solicitor)
What are the possible outcomes for a detainee after being interviewed?
The detainee may be:
- Released under investigation or on police bail
- Charged and released on police bail
- Charged and remanded in custody.
What is the role of the custody officer?
The custody officer is responsible for the handling and welfare of suspects in detention and must authorise continued detention.
What rank must the custody officer be?
Sergeant who is unconnected with the investigation of the offence
What must the custody officer do if grounds for detention cease to exist?
The custody officer must order the release of the person detained.
What happens if the custody officer is unavailable?
Another officer may perform the role, but they must not be involved in the investigation.
What must the custody officer determine regarding evidence?
The custody officer will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to charge the detainee. If not, D must be released unless there are reasonable grounds for belieiving that detention is necessary (preserve/obtain evidence by questioning)
What must the custody officer do if there are grounds to detain?
- authorise detention for a specified ground under s37 PACE
- open a custody record
- inform the D of the reason for their arrest
- inform the D of the reason for their detention
- advise them of their rights
- conduct a risk assessment and ensure any special arrangements are made
What must be recorded in the custody record?
- the circumstances of the arrest
- why it was necessary
- any comments made by the arrested person
What is the relevant COP for detention?
COP C
Who has the right to view the custody record?
The attending solicitor must view the custody record and has the right to consult it as soon as practicable.
Who conducts the review of detention?
The review officer, who must be at least of inspector rank and unconnected
What is the purpose of the review of detention?
Under s40 PACE, the review officer must be satisifed that detnetion is still necessary and must consider whether the grounds for detention as authroised by the custody officer still exist
When must the first review of detention take place?
The first review must take place within 6 hours of detention being authorised by the custody officer
After the first review of detention, when must subsequent reviews take place?
Every 9 hours after the first review.
What must the detainee be reminded of at every review?
- their right to free legal advice
- their right to make representations (unless they are unfit or asleep)
What is the initial detention time limit without charge?
The initial period is 24 hours without charge from the relevant time, which is when the detainee arrives at the police station.
How can detention be extended?
Detention can be extended by a further 12 hours, requiring authorization from an officer of at least superintendent rank.
What is required to enable a superintendent to extend the detention period?
- indictable offence
- must have reasonable grounds for believing that detention is necessary ( e.g to secure or preserve evidence or obtain evidence by questioning)
- the investigation must be being conducted diligently and expeditiously
What must happen if police want to detain beyond 36 hours?
They must apply to the magistrates’ court for a warrant of further detention:
- max 36 hours on a first application
- max 36 hours on second application
BUT subject to a longsto of 96 hours in total
