NCJ Number
104664
Date Published
1986
Length
11 pages
Annotation
JUSTICE, a British society of lawyers, recommended a form of exclusionary rule to help enforce legal limitations on police in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, but the recommendation was not accepted, leaving the act without any significant sanctions for police violations of it.
Abstract
The codification of police powers in the act uses internal police disciplinary procedures to ensure police compliance with the act. Should such procedures not be effective in countering police violations of the act, however, citizens must bear the consequences. An exclusionary rule would ensure the investigators would not gain an advantage over an accused by obtaining evidence illegally. The incentive for using abusive methods to obtain evidence would thus be removed. The framers of the act rejected JUSTICE's recommendation for an exclusionary rule, arguing that citizens have sufficient means through existing criminal and civil law to obtain remedies for abusive police conduct. The act does have a provision (Section 78) that approximates a discretionary exclusionary rule. It provides that in any proceedings, the court may refuse to allow evidence that would have an adverse effect on the fairness of the proceedings. This specifically encompasses circumstances under which the evidence was obtained. How the courts will interpret this section remains to be seen. Suggestions are offered for improving the legislative process to increase the quality of legislation.