The Police Powers of Search, Arrest, and Interrogation

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The Powers of Police

Individuals have civil rights; people are entitled to be allowed to

move freely and to have their person and their property respected.

However the police must have sufficient powers to investigate crimes.

Therefore Parliament has given the police special powers that can be

used in certain circumstances. These powers include the rights to stop

and search suspects, to arrest and interview people when necessary and

to take fingerprints and samples (blood samples) for scientific

analysis.

Without the police having these certain powers then it would be nearly

impossible to investigate any crimes. But it is also important for the

police to remember that, at the same time, they do not unnecessarily

harass ordinary people, and that those who are suspects are protected

from overzealous police officers. The law on police powers is covered

in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (also known as PACE) and

the codes of practice under section 66 of PACE.

There are five codes, running from code A to E. Code A deals with the

powers to stop and search, code B deals with powers to search premises

and seize property, code C deals with the detention, treatment and

questioning of suspects, code D deals with rules for identification

procedures and code E deals with tape-recording of interviews with

suspects.

This essay will discuss the police powers of search, arrest and

interrogation, which are all covered by PACE 1984.

The first item that this essay will be dealing with is the police's

powers to stop and search. Under section one of PACE the police have

the right to stop and search people and vehicles in a public ...

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... as including torture, inhuman or degrading treatment and the

use or threat of violence. Code C also gives protection to suspects

who are being questioned in regard to the physical conditions of the

interview. For example, the code says that interviews must be

adequately lit, heated and ventilated and that suspects must be given

adequate breaks for meals, refreshments and sleep.

In theory the custody officer who is supposed to keep accurate

records, should monitor the treatment of a suspect during their

detention period. This should include the length and timing of

interviews and other matters, such as visits of police officers to the

defendants cell, so that any breaches of the rules will be obvious.

However, research by Sanders and Bridges suggests that a substantial

minority of custody records (10%) are falsified.

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