NCJ Number
136434
Date Published
1989
Length
93 pages
Annotation
The provisions of Great Britain's Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) was designed to strike a more equal balance between police powers and protection for the arrested person. The operation of PACE during the period of detention at the police station is examined in detail.
Abstract
This report describes the flow of prisoners into the police station and contains information on the transfer of prisoners between stations. Another chapter is concerned with various issues related to legal advice and outside contact including the rate of requests for legal advice, failures to obtain advice or delays in receiving it, and the outcome of cases in which legal advice is given. Specific issues related to juvenile or ill prisoners are examined. The author looks at the investigation process during detention, presents data on the duration and frequency of questioning, and examines the demand for senior officers' authorities in serious cases. The outcome of detention and the length of time that those detained spend at the police station before and after being charged are analyzed. The author suggests that there are many resource implications arising from PACE; he recommends that future research focus on the variations between police stations in the implementation of detention procedures and the processes underlying these variations. 3 appendixes