The Police Interview.
The Crucial Decision - Should you answer the police's questions?
This is the crux of any interview. To decide on what to do you really need legal advice from a Criminal Solicitor or Accredited Police Station Representative.
They will get "Disclosure" from the police officer and explain the police evidence to you in a pre-interview consultation.
In deciding whether to advise you to answer questions or not they will need to hear from you, your version of events. Remember if you dont tell them the truth as to what has happened they will give you the wrong advice.
The consultation with you is legally privileged. This means that no-one can use what you tell your solicitor in that consultation what you said without your permission. Even if the police were to accidentally hear it or record it, it cannot be used in court as evidence against you.
The Criminal Solicitor or Police Station Representative will consider:
The offence or offences you are suspected of committing.
2. The strength of the police case in relation to that offence.
3. Your explanation of what happened.
4. Legal defences that may be available.
5. Police powers and range of possible outcomes.
Any police station criminal solicitor or accredited police station representative will probe the police for further details having received the officers disclosure. The police cannot lie in their disclosure but will frequently not provide information unless asked outright. For instance the police may say that they have a statement from the complainant but frequently leave out the fact that he or she are not supporting a prosecution. They may for instance imply they have a strong case against the person being interviewed but further probing may reveal that there are for instance no witnesses! This type of probing is the job of a legal representative. The Criminal Solicitors or police station representative first duty is to act in your best interests. This is not the same as the police's.
They will then advise you as to whether or not to answer the police's questions. They will advise you as to what will happen in the police interview, the legal implications of the police's procedures, the police caution, timescales and range of outcomes.
They will also monitor the interview to check that the police are conducting it legally and lawfully intervening as necessary when they think that the police are doing things that they should not be doing.
If you have a voluntary police interview in England or Wales and want free legal representation either at a voluntary interview or if you have been arrested please contact police station agent on 07535 494446 for free police station representation by Robert Cashman a fully qualified criminal solicitor who works on behalf of Tuckers solicitors. Representation can be by remote attendance if you are outside our local area or in person in Kent and South East London.