Police Powers and the Rights of Arrested Persons Notes

The police would need to question suspect before they can retrieve any concrete evidence. The person has to be in custody before potential crime takes place to question the person further and obtain more information. It is important that ordinary people are not unnecessarily harassed by the police and that suspects are protected from overzealous police methods. Hence, several rights are given to individuals. In s.28 PACE and Caution Code C, arrested person must be informed that he is under arrest and grounds for arrest. The Caution for arrest must be given. This is to ensure that detainees know why they are arrested to prevent the abuse of police powers. This is illustrated in the case of Christie v Leachinsky’s case. The defendant charged without warrant was not given a reason for arrest. Hence, the arrest was unjustified and the person could claim damages for false imprisonment. This upheld the rights of individuals. Under s.34 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, detainees are given the right to remain silent. However, if the detainee has consulted a lawyer, inferences could be drawn. This was upheld in the Rice v Connolly case. The appellant was convicted for obstruction a police in execution of his duty. However, his conviction was quashed as nobody is obliged in common law to answer police questions. Hence, protection is given to individuals as they have

  • Word count: 591
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
Access this essay

Police Powers Notes

Evaluate the protection given to persons taken into custody for questioning by the police. Do you think it is adequate?zl The police are given various powers to investigate crime. However, it may be at the expense of individual’s rights. The laws are mainly contained in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE)1984 and the Codes of Practice. Before PACE, police powers was spread across 70 Acts of Parliaments which caused much confusion of what they could and couldn’t do, and may have led to police abusing powers. Police have powers to stop and search people and vehicles in a public place under s1-7 of PACE. This includes car parks, and private gardens,( if the police officer has grounds to believe that the suspect does not live at that address). To use this power under PACE, the officer must have reasonable grounds for suspecting that the person is in possession of stolen articles. However, what amounts to ‘reasonable suspicion’ is very subjective and depends on the individual officer. As it is difficult for citizens to question police’s decisions, police are given a lot of powers under this act. However, in Osman v DPP, the officers failed to provide their name and station. Hence, it was held that the search of Mr Osman was unlawful. The requirement of providing the officer’s name and station protects the individual rights of citizens as it may deter police

  • Word count: 547
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
Access this essay

Entry to anothers land without permission is never justifiable and is always actionable per se. Discuss the above view of the tort of trespass to land.

Trespass to land occurs where a person directly enters upon another's land without permission, or remains upon the land, or places or projects any object upon the land. This tort is usually actionable per se as claimants do not need to prove damage. By contrast, nuisance is an indirect interference with another's use and enjoyment of land, and normally requires proof of damage to be actionable. With regards to trespass on highways, in Hickman v Maisey, it was traditionally thought that anyone who uses the highway for any other purpose (abuse) becomes a trespasser. This means use other than for passing and repassing and other incidental use which does not interfere with, or obstruct, the highway. In DPP v Jones, the defendants had staged a demonstration at the side of the road. None were behaving in a destructive or violent way, and nobody else using the highway was obstructed by their presence. It was held that the public highway is a public place which the public may enjoy for any reasonable purpose, provided that the activity in question does not amount to public or private nuisance and does not obstruct the highway by unreasonably impending the primary right of the public to pass and repass; within these qualifications there is a public right of peaceful assembly on the highway. Therefore, the entry of such land without explicit permission is justifiable and not always

  • Word count: 941
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
Access this essay

The regulations on arrest and detention of offenders under the Police and Criminal Act (PACE) 1984 create a fair balance between the rights of suspected offenders and the polices ability to investigate, detects and prevent criminal activity. Discuss.

The regulations on arrest and detention of offenders under the Police and Criminal Act (PACE) 1984 create a fair balance between the rights of suspected offenders and the police’s ability to investigate, detects and prevent criminal activity. Discuss. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984 is governing act which sets out the majority of police powers including arrest, detention, and interrogation. Furthermore, the codes of practice which offers guidance and recommendations when officers are carrying out there work are set out in PACE[1]. The act was introduced as a response to the loss of confidence in the police during the 70’s and 80’s as a result of the high profile miscarriages of justices such as that of The Guildford Four. As a result, PACE was introduced and designed to stop the exploitation of powers by those in an authority position such as gaining false confessions through means of violence and torture. Overall, the act is designed to create a balance between the powers of the police and the human rights of a suspect or other members of public[2]. However, the balance that is intended to be created is far from a reality, there are still high profile miscarriages of justices, corruption within the police force, and the unfair treatment of ethnic minorities and the general public. During the year of 1824, the Vagrancy Act (1824) was introduced which

  • Word count: 1725
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
Access this essay

police powers

Law and the legal system How police activities are controlled by the law and the effects of civilian and military law on the armed forces Task 1 The police are controlled by the law just like any other member of public. They will be prosecuted for selling drugs. They will be fined for dropping litter. They will not be let off lightly for any type of crime. Aside from civilian law though there are also laws inside the police force. The police are controlled by PACE (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984). This 'law' is split up in 6 different codes; * Code A - Stop and search * Code B - Searching premises and seizing property * Code C - Detention, treatment and questioning * Code D - Identification * Code E - Audio recording of suspects * Code F - Visual recording of suspects Examples of police abusing their powers: * Enter premises, ie...Trespass * Force confessions * Take and change evidence * Take away people's rights. An example of the police abusing their powers would be the Birmingham six, these were six men who were sentenced to life imprisonment in 1975 in an infamous miscarriage of justice for two pub bombings in Birmingham that killed 24 people. Their convictions were overturned by the Court of appeal on March 15, 1991 largely on the basis that traces of nitro-glycerine found on their bodies could have come from innocuous sources such as soap. The

  • Word count: 1856
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Law
Access this essay