The police station interview is one of the most consequential moments in a criminal case, and often the first place a solicitor's advice really counts. What a suspect says — or chooses not to say — can decide how the rest of the case unfolds, so you need to know exactly what the rules require of the police, what protections your client has, and when silence helps or hurts. This lesson gives you that working knowledge, from the caution itself through to challenging a confession that should never have been obtained.
What this lesson covers:
- Interviews, the Caution and the Right to Silence — what counts as an interview, when the caution applies, and the true scope of the right to silence.
- Conduct of the Interview — where interviews happen, what disclosure is owed, and the rules on breaks and recording.
- Legal Advice and Vulnerable Suspects — the right to advice, the appropriate adult, and interpreters.
- Significant Statements and Silences — what they are and how the police must handle them.
- Adverse Inferences — when silence can be used against your client under the CJPOA 1994.
- Excluding Interview Evidence — using sections 76 and 78 to keep unfair evidence out.