Voluntary Police Interviews

You do not have to attend a voluntary interview but are likely to be informed that in order for the police to progress their investigation, they will need to put questions to you which may result in an arrest.

Not necessarily. The police case will start at the investigation stage, which will include the securing and preserving of any evidence. This is done by questioning a suspect and taking any necessary witness statements both for and against the accused. When the police investigation stage is complete, the sergeant or crown prosecution service will have the final decision on whether or not there is sufficient evidence to prosecute to court.

No. We will interject in an interview if the police try to pressure you into any admission of guilt when you are innocent. Furthermore, with legal representation by your side, we will ensure that your defence is fairly administered.

When the police interview a suspect under ‘Caution’ there are three legal advice options for any defence lawyer to consider.

The legal advice given will change from case to case, as there is no ‘one size fits all’ set of circumstances.

The lawyer will have to carefully consider the strengths and weaknesses in the police disclosure as well as taking into account a suspects account in response to the allegation(s).

From this point on the lawyer will then be in the best position to decide on an interview strategy and advising on the following: –

Providing a ‘no comment’ interview and exercising your legal right to remain silent.

The public’s perception is that this makes a suspect look guilty but as defence lawyers we would argue that a suspect is innocent until proven guilty which will ultimately be decided by the credibility and reliability of the evidence in the case.
In answering ‘No Comment’ it is a way of putting the prosecution to proof.

Your lawyer could advise to put forward a full account in interview advancing any defence should you seek to later rely on if the matter did go before to court.

Lastly it maybe decided between a suspect and lawyer that the best way to advance their account is through a ‘prepared written statement’.

The lawyer will usually read out this document after the police officer in interview has cautioned the suspect.

Following on from this written statement a suspect will usually be advised to answer ‘No Comment’ to questions thereafter.

This tactic is commonly used by defence lawyers in a way to not let the suspect open to intense cross-examination on the account provided and to also not leave them open to a number of questions that they are otherwise not prepared for.

It is also a useful tool in the case of a vulnerable person or a first time offender who is new to this process.

We would strongly advise that it is in a client’s best interests to opt for expert legal advice at the police station. You will then have a more in-depth understanding of the process and will be given the most appropriate advice in line with your case. This will, in turn, potentially have a positive effect on the outcome.

During the start of a police investigation the officer in the case will collect certain material, which can include but is not limited to witness statements and video evidence.

When instructing a lawyer to deal with your police interview they will be provided either beforehand (upon request) or on the day with a pre interview disclosure document summarising the case against you.

There is no obligation on the investigating officer to disclose the whole evidence against a suspect prior to interview, which can include physical copies of witness statements.

The law however states that your lawyer should be provided with ‘sufficient’ disclosure to enable legal advice to be given.

This section is referred to at paragraph 11.1A in the Police & Criminal Evidence Act 1984 handbook.

The guidance is set out under 11ZA and describes what is ‘sufficient’ dependent on the circumstances of the case.

It should however normally include, as a minimum, a description of the facts relating to the suspected offence(s) that are known to the officer, including the time and place in question.

This aims to avoid suspects being confused or unclear as to what they are being investigated for.

If your lawyer describes a scenario whereby ‘insufficient’ disclosure is provided they are likely to advise a suspect to exercise their legal right to remain silent or to more commonly answer ‘No Comment’ to questions.

Once your legal team have been provided with disclosure they are still within their rights in acting in the suspects best interests to probe the police on this with a line of questioning of their own.

This is a tactic in an attempt to determine and consider the real strengths and weaknesses of a police case.

Furthermore in adopting this approach your legal team will also be putting themselves and more importantly you at an advantage to enable the best legal advice to be given before the commencement of interview.

What To Expect In More Serious Cases?

We do find in the more serious of cases that the investigating officer will provide very limited disclosure and can adopt a two-stage disclosure approach.

This means that during an interview the officer can suspend it at any stage dependent on whether the interview is going to plan.

They will then provide your lawyer with a further disclosure document, which could be for example be, a fingerprint lift from the scene, which they wish for you to account for.

During the pause in interview the suspect will then seek further legal advice in light of this new evidence to consider before deciding on any potential response to this.

When suspects represent themselves they will be at a serious disadvantage, as the police will divulge very little before interview in an attempt to put the evidence to you with questions that you are not otherwise prepared for.

It is important to understand that a Voluntary or Caution Plus 3 Police Interview is actually an interview whereby you are a SUSPECT in a CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION.

The interview is no different to when you are arrested and the same Caution still applies in that: –

“You do not have to say anything. But, it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something, which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.”

Your main rights are outlined in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and the Codes of Practise.

You must be informed that: –

• You are not under arrest
• You are free to leave at any time (albeit if you do they will consider whether there is a necessity to arrest)
• You are ‘entitled’ to legal advice

In our experience in dealing with voluntary interviews on a daily basis it has become apparent that most officers will play down this process and make you feel like you are attending to simply assist in there investigation. YOU ARE NOT!

You are a suspect not a witness. If you are in doubt about whether you are a witness or a suspect get a lawyer to contact the police and find out for you.

It is also questionable as to whether your rights are properly administered over a quick phone call to invite you in.

This is again different to being arrested and taken into a custody suite whereby the booking in process is carefully monitored.

You may also be informed that if you do not comply with this process then you maybe arrested. This then defeats the idea of it being a voluntary process and makes it that of a compulsory one. If these threats are made get a lawyer to contact the police for you they may not have enough evidence to arrest you.

Furthermore even if invited in for what you believe to be a Voluntary Police Interview Process it may become apparent that there is a necessity to arrest upon arrival in accordance which Code G of the Police & Criminal Evidence Act.

The lesson here is to therefore have legal representation by your side from the very outset when first contacted by the police.

We will be by your side to minimise the chances of any prosecution.

It is vital to have legal representation, which is one of your main rights. It is against the law for the police to dissuade you otherwise.

There has been an increase in the recent years for police to deal with people on a Voluntary/Caution Plus 3 interview basis if there is no ‘necessity’ to arrest.

We appreciate the stressful situation that people can face and that prosecution can be life changing.

What are the Benefits in such a Service?

Firstly your lawyer may be provided with a pre interview disclosure document, which will outline in summary the evidence they think they have against you.

Your legal team can request this before any scheduled interview. You will instantly be at an advantage by knowing what the case is about.

This summary will generally include the brief circumstances surrounding the allegation to which the strengths and weaknesses of the case can be considered.

We will then have ample time to take your instructions in response to the allegation(s) in a private consultation prior to the commencement of interview.

In this consultation we can establish potential witnesses who will need to be spoken to and the securing of any evidence that may support your defence.

We can then be in the best position to give you the appropriate legal advice for interview with consideration to all of the above.

The answer is yes. If the police sergeant overseeing the case or the crown prosecution service deems there to be ‘sufficient’ evidence to charge, then you will receive a postal requisition (summons) to attend court.

No. If the police investigating officer considers there to be a witness of evidential value, in any case, they will approach them with a view of taking a written formal statement. It would be the suspect who has a recorded police interview.

No. You have the right to remain silent or to more commonly answer no comment to any questions put to you. It may be the case that you are not comfortable talking to the police at all as it is your first interview. In this scenario, your legal representative can prepare and read out a written statement on your behalf at the commencement of the interview setting out your version of events.

Yes. We will be with you throughout the whole interview process. It is also your right to have the interview suspended at any point to seek further legal advice.

The purpose of a police interview is to give a suspect an opportunity to respond to any allegation(s) that has been made against them and to advance any defence should they later wish to rely on at any subsequent court proceedings.

One can never be prepared for what lies ahead of them in a police interview.

At the commencement of the interview everyone will introduce themselves for the recording and explain their roles.

The lawyer’s role is to protect and advance a suspects legal rights as well as providing continuous support and advice throughout the whole interview process.

We will interject if the police are being oppressive in their line of questioning.

The interview can be suspended at anytime to seek further legal advice.

The investigating officers role is one of impartiality and by this we mean that they should be listening to a suspects version of events with as much credibility as to what the victim/witnesses are saying.

In reality defence lawyers see a more biased approach on a daily basis whereby some officers our out to prove guilt.

In addition to this the police are duty bound to follow up any lines of enquiries that a suspect brings to their attention to assist in their defence.

This particular point is reiterated in the attorney generals pre-charge engagement guidelines.

The officer in the case will consult with their police sergeant in the first instance with a view of them making a decision.

The sergeant can decide to deal with the case internally but can also refer the matter to the crown prosecution service for a decision.

The sergeant will have to be satisfied that the case meets the ‘threshold test’, which is the evidential standard that a case must meet before being referred to the cps for a charging decision.

If the police/cps believe that there is ‘sufficient’ evidence to prosecute then a suspect will receive a summons in the post to attend court on a specified date and time.

If it is deemed that there is ‘insufficient’ evidence to prosecute a suspect then ‘no further action’ will be taken.

Please be aware that if any ‘new evidence’ comes to light then a case can be re opened although this is very rare and dependent on the level of offence in question as summary only offences have a prosecution time limit.

The police/cps may also give consideration as to whether a suspect is suitable to be dealt with out of court. This will usually be based on admissions and remorse shown in interview: –

A suspect can be considered for a community resolution. This is a way of a suspect being dealt with for less serious offences and can be as little as a letter of apology. This does not form part of a criminal record and will therefore not appear on a standard disclosure barring service (DBS) check. It however maybe disclosable in enhanced checks in the ‘relevant information’ section dependent on the work placement you are in or applying for. The community resolution is recorded locally on police information systems and can be accessed for intelligence purposes. It can also be considered in light of new similar offences.

A ‘simple caution’ will form part of a criminal record and will come up on a standard DBS check. The enhanced check will include this as well as any further information held by police and seen to be relevant with consideration to the work placement role.

Further to the above ‘conditional cautions’ are more commonly being used to provide an element of rehabilitation for the suspect. For example this can be for a suspect to attend a drivers awareness course further to making admissions in interview for a driving related offence.

If a suspect fails to complete such course within a specified stated timeframe they could end up finding themselves receiving a summons to attend court as the only then alternative in light of the admissions made in interview.

Cautions will be defined as spent immediately but conditional cautions become spent after three months.

You must get legal advice regarding cautions. It may seem an easy way to conclude with the matter but accepting a caution could have serious effects on your present or future employment or business prospects.

For example accepting a caution may prevent you getting a job in the care profession.