If you are investigated by the Police, interaction with the Investigating Officer usually occurs in one of three ways:

• Being stopped on-the-spot, for offences such as failure to move on, speeding, roadside breath test, public nuisance etc. These are situational investigations.
• Being served with a search warrant, for your home, car or workplace. These are usually for longer-reaching offences where the Police are looking for something or gathering evidence against you.
• Being arrested and conveyed to a Police station, or asked to attend voluntarily for an interview. These are usually offences with little evidence required to be gathered from you, but rather, usually based largely on verbal evidence or evidence supplied by a Complainant.

In each of these cases, there are three things that you are required by law (section 16 of the Criminal Investigation (Identifying People) Act 2002) to provide;

• Your full name
• Your date of birth
• Your address

Most of the time, the Police will already have this information, and will use what you say to verify your identity. Failure to provide this information is a criminal offence in and of itself.

Section 57 of the Road Traffic Act 1974 also creates the positive obligation on the owner or operator of a vehicle to provide all information possible to identify the driver of a vehicle if it causes bodily harm or causes the death of another person. Failure to do so is a criminal offence punishable by up to 12 months in prison.

You are not obliged to provide any further information or responses whatsoever. Your right to silence is a fundamental right, protected by both legislation and common (case) law.

The Police will often frame an interview as an opportunity to provide evidence which may assist you, or may convince them not to charge you – to ‘tell your side of the story’. In some limited circumstances, this can occur, however, it is our experience that Police interviews are often used to support charges against the interviewee, or suspect. The decision not to participate in an interview, or declining to provide responses to police questions, is not a sign of guilt. In most cases, it is the prudent option which best protects your legal rights and provides the best defence options in cases where charges arise.

However, it is always our advice to provide a ‘no comment’ interview, if required or requested to participate in one. This is to protect your right to silence until such time as you can obtain specific legal advice to assist you and prevent inadvertent disclosures to the Police which they can and will use against you if given the opportunity. Keep in mind that ‘no comment’ does not mean, ‘I don’t know’, or ‘I can’t remember’, which are positively geared responses which could then be challenged at trial by the Police if you later tell a different version of events.

‘No comment’ always means ‘no comment’.

Your version of what occurred, including a flat denial of any allegation made against you, is solely your evidence and should be protected to best serve your interests and legal rights. If you are considering answering the Police questions about a criminal investigation against you, ask yourself who will make the best use of that information on your behalf – is it the police?  If in doubt, seek legal advice.

If you are uncertain about what to do, contact our office to obtain preliminary advice before the interview, or as soon as possible after such an interview.