Information which had been volunteered without questions was not an interview for PACE purposes. Citations: Times 23-Mar-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 84, 86 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 08 October 2022; Ref: scu.87318
The claimant sought damages after his arrest by armed police. The defendant appealed a substantial award of damages. Held: The section required the officer to have reasonable grounds for suspecting the arrestees to be guilty of the offence. The constable must suspect both that an arrestable offence has been committed and that the citizen he … Continue reading Parker v Chief Constable of the Hampshire Constabulary: CA 25 Jun 1999
The defendant appealed against his conviction for assaulting a police officer. He complained that he had been subjected to an unlawful assault, in that before being searched under the 1994 Act, the officer had not given his details. Held: The obligation on an officer to provide his name, number and station was mandatory and a … Continue reading Osman v Southwark Crown Court: Admn 1 Jul 1999
Fair Coment on Political Activities The defendant newspaper had published articles wrongly accusing the claimant, the former Prime Minister of Ireland of duplicity. The paper now appealed, saying that it should have had available to it a defence of qualified privilege because of the claimant’s status as a politician. Held: The appeal failed (Lords Hope … Continue reading Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd and others: HL 28 Oct 1999
The court asked whether the power of arrest under s6 of the 1864 Act survived s26 of the 1984 Act. Held: The 1984 Act affected only the powers given to police officers as police officers. The power under s6 of the Vagrancy Act applied to any person, and therefore was not affected by a restriction … Continue reading Gapper v Chief Constable of Avon and Somerset Constabulary: CA 2 Jul 1998
The defendants appealed against their convictions for murder saying that the court should not have relied upon hearsay evidence. A witness had refused to give evidence, but his earlier evidnece was used. Held: The appeals failed. The judge had acted properly in that when considering the exercise of his judgment under section 78 of the … Continue reading Adeojo and Another v Regina: CACD 6 Feb 2013
The claimants sought review of a decision of the Serious Organised Crime Agency to seize documents which have been the subject of the unlawful execution of a search warrant, purporting to act for this record seizure under section 19 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. SOCA, with identical powers to those of the … Continue reading Cook and Another v Serious Organised Crime Agency: Admn 27 Jul 2010
Claimants sought damages for personal injuries incurred when, in Pristina, Kosovo and during a riot, British soldiers on a UN peacekeeping expedition fired on a car. Held: The incidents occurred in the course of peace-keeping duties. It was not argued that they occurred in combat, and it was established that in cases of riot, soldiers … Continue reading Bici and Bici v Ministry of Defence: QBD 7 Apr 2004
A store detective said the plaintiffs had stolen from the store. He was wrong. The plaintiffs sought damages from the defendant for false imprisonment. Held: If the police use their own discretion to arrest a suspect, an informer is not liable for false imprisonment. The intervention by the police breaks any causation of the store … Continue reading Davidson v Chief Constable of North Wales Police and Another: CA 31 May 1993
PACE codes are there to protect suspects against the overwhelming power of the state, and must be followed. Citations: Times 30-Jun-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 25 October 2022; Ref: scu.86636
A sample of hair taken without the suspect’s consent was not an intimate sample, and did not require the associated permissions and procedures. Evidence derived from such a sample was accordingly admissible in evidence. Citations: Ind Summary 05-Sep-1994, Times 10-Aug-1994, Gazette 07-Oct-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 65 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Police, … Continue reading Regina v Cooke (Stephen): CACD 10 Aug 1994
A tape recording of a conversation made surreptitiously while a defendant is in a police cell is admissible in evidence. Citations: Independent 30-Mar-1993 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 78 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Evidence Updated: 25 October 2022; Ref: scu.86085
The court discussed when it was appropriate for the Court of Appeal to substitute other lesser convictions, after the main conviction had been declared unsafe. Held: After studying the authorities at length, the court felt that the various convictions should be quashed, but that in some cases there was a possibility of substituting verdicts of … Continue reading Regina v Graham, Kansal, etc: CACD 25 Oct 1996
The defendant appealed against his conviction for rape. There had been a DNA match, but the defendant did not match the description given by the victim, and she had not picked him out. He argued that DNA evidence alone should not be used to convict, and that the judge had misdirected the jury as to … Continue reading Regina v Adams: CACD 26 Apr 1996
The judge should direct on the fact that caution is required before a jury can be asked to rely upon a confession of a mentally handicapped person. Citations: Ind Summary 20-Feb-1995 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 77 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 08 October 2022; Ref: scu.86083
A confession made by a mentally handicapped person to a non-independent witness should only be admitted into evidence after a proper warning was agreed to be given to the jury. Citations: Times 26-Jan-1995 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 77 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice, Criminal Evidence Updated: 08 October 2022; Ref: scu.86084
A decision on whether a suspect has a mental handicap must be reached on evidence, and the decision must be express. Citations: Ind Summary 22-Jan-1996, Times 12-Dec-1995 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 66 codes Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice Updated: 22 September 2022; Ref: scu.86798
The defendant had published a set of guidelines for intelligence officers called upon to detain and interrogate suspects. The defendant said that the guidelines could only be tested against individual real life cases, and that the court should not answer hypothetical questions. The objection lay to reactions to anticipated torture and mistreatment by third party … Continue reading Equality and Human Rights Commission v Prime Minister and Others: Admn 3 Oct 2011
The claimant sought to challenge search warrants issued by the respondents. The warrants were criticised as being too widely drawn, and in breach of the 1984 Act. Criticism was also made of the implementation of the searches, in the use of excess numbers of officers, and the taking of images of hard disks, thus acquiring … Continue reading Da Costa and Co (a Firm) and Collins v Thames Magistrates Court and H M Commissioners of Customs and Excise: QBD 25 Jan 2002
There was an obligation to destroy fingerprints and samples in respect of persons who were acquitted. Nevertheless, if such material was unlawfully retained, it could be used for the purpose of investigating another offence, and the evidence could be used in a subsequent trial unless it was excluded at the judge’s discretion. Citations: [1999] EWCA … Continue reading Attorney General’s Reference No 3 of 1999 (Lynn): CACD 26 Mar 1999
The provisions of the Code of Practice regarding identification parades are mandatory and additional unwritten conditions are not to be inserted. Where there was an identification and the suspect challenged that identification, and consented to the parade, the parade must be held. There is nothing in the words of code of practice to allow police … Continue reading Regina v Forbes (Anthony Leroy) (Attorney General’s Reference No 3 of 1999): HL 19 Dec 2000
Police officers have no power to use reasonable force, to compel a suspect to undergo an identification by confrontation. Powers generally phrased in the Act did not override an individual suspect’s rights. Beldam LJ said that the requirement that reasonable force may be used to secure conditions of detention does not authorise the use of … Continue reading Regina v Jones; Regina v Nelson: CACD 26 Mar 1999
The defendant appealed from his conviction of murder. He complained that the judge should not have admitted in evidence material derived from a covert surveillance. The covert surveillance was of the defendant at his family home, and had been authorised by the Chief Constable and the Surveillance Commissioner. He complained that the matters in issue … Continue reading Turner v Regina: CACD 9 May 2013
The claimant alleged complicity by the defendant, (now former) Foreign Secretary, in his mistreatment by the US while held in Libya. He also alleged involvement in his unlawful abduction and removal to Libya, from which had had fled for political persecution. The defendants now appealed from rejection of the defendants’ claim to state immunity and … Continue reading Belhaj and Another v Straw and Others: SC 17 Jan 2017
The two defendants appealed from convictions of conspiracy to defraud, saying that the court should not have admitted in evidence the admissions of co-defendants who had pleaded guilty. Held: The appeal failed. Judges: Sir Brian Leveson, Jeremy Baker, Goose JJ Citations: [2018] EWCA Crim 2486, [2018] WLR(D) 689, [2018] 4 WLR 154 Links: Bailii, WLRD … Continue reading Shirt and Another v Regina: CACD 8 Nov 2018
In a prosecution for an offence of indecent assault on a girl under 16 under the section, it was necessary for the prosecution to prove the absence of a positive belief in the defendant’s mind that the victim was 16 or over. The legislation history showed an anomalous bringing together of different, and conflicting strands … Continue reading Regina v K: HL 25 Jul 2001
The claimant alleged that his treatment in the police station had been wrongful. His solicitor, representing two clients, had refused to attend the interview with the claimant until he had seen the second client. There was a scene and the solicitor was excluded. The claimant said that this had unlawfully imposed a condition on his … Continue reading McDonagh, Regina (on The Application of) v Chief Constable of Leicestershire Constabulary: Admn 19 Dec 2013
Evidence from 3rd Party Torture Inadmissible The applicants had been detained following the issue of certificates issued by the respondent that they posed a terrorist threat. They challenged the decisions of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission saying that evidence underlying the decisions had probably been obtained by torture committed by foreign powers, and should not … Continue reading A and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department (No 2): HL 8 Dec 2005
Twins were conjoined (Siamese). Medically, both could not survive, and one was dependent upon the vital organs of the other. Doctors applied for permission to separate the twins which would be followed by the inevitable death of one of them. The parents, devout Roman Catholics, resisted. Held: The parents’ views were subject to the overriding … Continue reading In Re A (Minors) (Conjoined Twins: Medical Treatment); aka In re A (Children) (Conjoined Twins: Surgical Separation): CA 22 Sep 2000
The defendant appealed against a refusal of a stay of the proceedings as an abuse, and the decision to admit certaiin evidence, and a refusal to issue a witness summons against an alleged informant. The defendant had been subject to an undercover investigation, which, he said officers had acted as agent provocateurs. Held: In assessing … Continue reading Regina v Stone: CACD 19 Jul 2000
Evidence which had been obtained by a police trick (false shop) was admissible. It’s use was not unfair. Lord Taylor CJ said that the defendants ‘voluntarily applied themselves to the trick’. When assessing impact the court should assume that the jury was faithful to the directions of law. Judges: Lord Taylor CJ Citations: Gazette 08-Jul-1992, … Continue reading Regina v Christou; Regina v Wright: CACD 8 Jul 1992
A shop store-detective could be said to be a person charged with a duty to investigate offences. Whether he is, is a question of fact in each case, and its determination will turn on the evidence of the terms of the contract between the store detective and his employer and all the circumstances of the … Continue reading Regina v Bayliss: CACD 16 Mar 1993
The defendant challenged his conviction for obstructing a police officer and threatening behaviour. The officer had taken hold of him to restrain him, not intending to arrest him, but only to establish whether he was a person they were looking for. He then struggled to escape and was arrested. Held: The appeal succeeded. At the … Continue reading Wood v Director of Public Prosecutions: Admn 14 May 2008
Prosecutor’s appeal against dismissal of charge of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour. Officers stopping youths in street and searching for drugs. The defendant had challenged the admission of statements said to have been made at the scene by the defendants under Code C. After exclusion of the admissions, the prosecutor had offered no … Continue reading Director of Public Prosecutions v Lawrence: Admn 16 Jul 2007
The claimants had been detained under the 1971 Act, after completing sentences of imprisonment pending their return to their home countries under deportations recommended by the judges at trial, or chosen by the respondent. They challenged as unlawful the respondent’s, at first unpublished, policy introduced in 2006, that by default, those awaiting deportation should be … Continue reading Lumba (WL) v Secretary of State for The Home Department: SC 23 Mar 2011
The defendant was arrested for burglary and a non-intimate sample taken without his consent. The DNA profile matched blood at the scene of the burglary, and this match was the bedrock of the prosecution case. Before the trial, prosecuting counsel applied ex parte to withhold disclosure of certain material. The defence were notified of the … Continue reading Regina v Smith (Joe): CACD 20 Dec 2000
The defendant appealed against his conviction for driving with excess alcohol. He complained that though the officers suspected him of having consumed alcohol, they asked him whether he had been drinking without cautioning him, and that no print out from the Intoximeter having been produced, there was no evidence on which he could be convicted. … Continue reading Sneyd v Director of Public Prosecutions: Admn 24 Feb 2006
The applicant had left care, but still received assistance. She was arrested and the police asked the attending social worker to arrange secure accommodation overnight. The respondent refused. The court was asked what duty (if any) is owed by local authorities to provide ‘secure accommodation’ for arrested juveniles whom they are requested to receive under … Continue reading M, Regina (on the Application of) v Gateshead Council: CA 14 Mar 2006
The defendant objected to evidence being used as evidence of bad character against him under the 2003 Act, when it would not have been admissible as similar fact evidence under the old rules. Held: Obiter dicta in O’Brien did not mean that the Act merely codified existing law.The Act made the pre-existing test obsolete. Once … Continue reading Regina v Weir, Somanathan,Yaxley-Lennon, Manister, Qiang He and De Qun He: CACD 11 Nov 2005
The claimants had been convicted of murder, but their tariffs had not yet been set when the 2003 Act came into effect. They said that the procedure under which their sentence tarriffs were set were not compliant with their human rights in that the tarriff was set by reference back to a judge without a … Continue reading Hammond, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: HL 1 Dec 2005
The police had obtained an ex parte order for the production of files from a firm of solicitors relating to financial transactions of one of their clients. The police believed that the client had been provided with money to purchase property by an alleged drug trafficker. The solicitors relied on the exemption in section 27(4)(ii) … Continue reading Regina v Central Criminal Court ex parte Francis and Francis: HL 1989
Where a defendant gave a sample of DNA during an investigation, but the sample was not destroyed on his acquittal, evidence obtained from a cross match relating to a different crime was not admissible. The statute requires the samples to be destroyed, and evidence based upon samples not so destroyed cannot be admitted. Judges: Swinton … Continue reading Regina v B (Attorney-General’s Reference No 3 of 1999); Regina v Weir: CACD 26 May 2000
The claimants had been imprisoned for many years before their convictions were quashed. They claimed compensation under the Act. The assessor said that there should be deducted from the award the living expenses they would have incurred if they had not been in prison. Held: The statutory scheme replaced an ex gratia scheme, and there … Continue reading Independent Assessor v O’Brien, Hickey, Hickey: CA 29 Jul 2004
The six claimants sought damages for wrongful arrest and false imprisonment. Each had been arrested on an officer’s suspicion. They operated CCTV equipment, and it appeared that tapes showing the commission of an offence had been tampered with. Each was of good character, and the suspicion was based solely on their opportunity to have access … Continue reading Cumming and others v Chief Constable of Northumbria Police: CA 17 Dec 2003
The appellant and co-accused were charged with murder. They said they had gone to meet the deceased to collect a debt, but had been attacked with a knife by the deceased. Two of the three had knives and knew of the other knife. Held: All were taking part in a joint and unlawful enterprise. Each … Continue reading Chan Wing-Siu v The Queen: PC 21 Jun 1984
Where a building includes several premises, a search warrant must specify which premises were to be searched. Citations: Times 15-Aug-1996 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 15, 16, 23 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Crime Updated: 05 June 2022; Ref: scu.88675
When a telephone engineer used his position to make unauthorised telephone intercepts, and produced apparent evidence of criminal activity, he was, under the Act, a person engaged in providing a public communications system, and the recordings were not admissible. The phrase ‘engaged in’ could refer either to his status, or that the act was part … Continue reading Regina v Sargent: HL 25 Oct 2001
Evidence was acknowledged to have been obtained unlawfully and in breach of another article of the Convention. The police had installed covert listening devices on private property without the knowledge or consent of the owner. UK national law did not regulate sufficiently the use of covert listening devices to protect the individual’s rights under the … Continue reading Khan v The United Kingdom: ECHR 12 May 2000
The police seized a car from Mr Costello, believing that it was stolen. The seizure was lawful at the time, by virtue of section 19 of PACE. The police never brought any criminal proceedings against Mr Costello, but they refused to return the car to him, arguing that it had been stolen and that that … Continue reading Costello v Chief Constable of Derbyshire Constabulary: CA 22 Mar 2001
The applicant sought review of a decision to remove him from a witness protection scheme within the prison. He claimed that having been promised protection, he had a legitimate expectation of protection, having been told he would receive protection while he was in prison. He had not eventually been relied upon as a witness. Held: … Continue reading Bloggs 61, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department: CA 18 Jun 2003
A Company Court Judge may not fetter the later use of insolvency interviews by a criminal court. The obligation to give the information will not prejudice the fairness of a possible criminal trial, since the accused would still have the protection of section 78 of the Act of 1984. Judges: Lord Browne-Wilkinson Citations: Independent 26-Jul-1994, … Continue reading Hamilton and Another v Naviede and Director of SFO: HL 26 Jul 1994
The defendant had been accused of the theft of a chocolate bar from a shop, and of assault on the store detective who had detained him. He had been acquitted of the charge of theft, and now appealed against the conviction for the assault saying that he had resisted an unlawful arrest. Held: The defendant’s … Continue reading Regina v Self: CACD 25 Feb 1992
Judicial Review is not the appropriate way to challenge the excessive nature of a search warrant issues by magistrates. A private law remedy is better. Jowitt J said: ‘Judicial review is not a fact finding exercise and it is an extremely unsatisfactory tool by which to determine, in any but the clearest of cases, whether … Continue reading Regina v Chief Constable for Warwickshire and Others Ex Parte Fitzpatrick and Others: QBD 1 Oct 1997
The judge is to give the jury a warning as to the strength and reliability of a handicapped person’s statement made in the absence of an appropriate adult, unless the case was strong without it. Citations: Times 14-Jul-1994, Ind Summary 29-Aug-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 77 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Practice … Continue reading Regina v Campbell: CACD 14 Jul 1994
K, aged 16, had left home to join what was said to be a religious sect. His whereabouts were unknown. He had been made a ward of court and the Official Solicitor was appointed to represent his interests. He had sent messages to say that he was well and did not wish to return. The … Continue reading Kelly (A Minor) v British Broadcasting Corporation: FD 25 Jul 2000
R was charged with burglary. He objected to the admission of evidence of a confession to a police officer, saying that it had been improperly obtained. Both prosecution and defence suggested the need for a voir dire, but the magistrates declined. Held: R’s request for a writ of mandamus succeeded. Once the parties accepted that … Continue reading Regina v Liverpool Juvenile Court ex parte R: 1988
The claimants challenged the instruction that they must squat whilst undergoing a strip search in prison. A dog search had given cause to supect the presence of explosives in the wing, and the officers understood that such explosives might be hidden anally. Held: The common thread in all the cases has been the search to … Continue reading Regina v Carroll and Al-Hasan and Secretary of State for Home Department: Admn 16 Feb 2001
Nolan LJ said that the phrase used in section 15(6)(b), ‘so far as is practicable,’ is imprecise and that it may well be impossible to draw a clear line between what is and what is not practicable. Judges: Nolan LJ Citations: Unreported 14 February 92 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 15(6)(b) Jurisdiction: England … Continue reading Regina v Central Criminal Court ex parte A J D Holdings Ltd: CACD 14 Feb 1992
The statutory power of arrest in section 91 of the CJA 1967 for the offence of drunk and disorderly in a public place was not repealed by section 26(1), despite the absence of any reference thereto in Schedule 2 to PACE. Citations: [1990] COD 149, [1990] CLR 394, Times 17-Nov-1989 Statutes: Criminal Justice Act 1967 … Continue reading Director of Public Prosecutions v Kitching: 1989
Whether an officer had reasonable cause to arrest somebody without a warrant depended upon an objective assessment of the information available to him, and not upon his subjective beliefs. The court had three questions to ask (per Woolf LJ): ‘(a) Did the arresting officer suspect that the person arrested was guilty of the offence? The … Continue reading Castorina v Chief Constable of Surrey: CA 10 Jun 1988
The driver left an accident. The police entered his home unlawfully, and on his refusal to supply a breath test, he was arrested and charged with faiing to supply. Held: A lawful arrest is not an essential requirement before a breath test, and there was no general principle that there could be no conviction under … Continue reading Fox v Chief Constable of Gwent: HL 1986
Hospital admission records not disclosable to Police without patient’s consent. Citations: Times 03-May-1993 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 11 12 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Evidence Updated: 11 May 2022; Ref: scu.86300
A statement was wrongly admitted after the suspect had been wrongly refused a solicitor. Citations: Times 16-Jun-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 78 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Evidence Updated: 08 May 2022; Ref: scu.86678
The section required a constable to have reasonable grounds for suspecting that an arrestable offence had been committed before he could arrest without warrant. Held: Bingham LJ said: ‘It is not of course to be expected that a police constable in the heat of an emergency, or while in hot pursuit of a suspected criminal, … Continue reading Chapman v Director of Public Prosecutions: CA 1989
The court distinguished the test of the admissibility of evidence of similar facts from the criteria according to which the court should exercise its discretion to exclude such evidence. He said that the test of admissibility was the same in civil and in criminal cases. Judges: Warner J Citations: [1984] 1 WLR 625 Jurisdiction: England … Continue reading Berger v Raymond Sun Ltd: 1984
The plaintiff sought damages from the loss of a diamond deposited with the defendant bank as security. He asked to present evidence about the experience of another customer who had lost jewellery he had deposited with it. Held: The proposed evidence was admissible. (Lawton LJ) If a defendant in this class of case said ‘My … Continue reading Sattin v National Union Bank Ltd: CA 21 Feb 1978
The plaintiff was arrested at a demonstration, charged with obstructing the highway and convicted before the magistrates. His conviction was quashed by the Crown Court on appeal. He sued for assault, unlawful arrest, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution. He sought discovery of documents showing any convictions of or adverse disciplinary findings against the police witnesses. … Continue reading Thorpe v Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police: CA 1989
Extradition proceedings are criminal proceedings so as to allow the admission of computer printout under criminal procedures. Citations: Times 11-Mar-1996 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984$ 69 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Cited by: Appeal from – In Re Levin; Regina v Governor of Brixton Prison, Ex parte Levin HL 10-Apr-1997 The applicant had been … Continue reading Regina v Governor of Brixton Prison and Another, Ex Parte Levin: QBD 11 Mar 1996
The forcing of an object from the mouth of a detainee was a breach of the PACE codes but did amount to an an intimate search. An ‘Intimate body search’ requires a physical examination, not mere visual inspection. Citations: Gazette 08-Dec-1993, Ind Summary 29-Nov-1993, Times 12-Nov-1993 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 18(1) Jurisdiction: … Continue reading Regina v Hughes: CACD 12 Nov 1993
Section 78 is properly applied in committal proceedings. Examining justices could exclude the evidence from their consideration only if satisfied that its admission at the trial would be so obviously unfair to the proceedings that no judge properly directing himself could admit it. Even in such a case it would generally be far better to … Continue reading Regina v King’s Lynn Justices, Ex parte Holland: QBD 1993
1. The respondent’s instructions and guidance to immigration officers correctly reflect the operation of sections 66 and 67 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) and of the Immigration (PACE Codes of Practice) Direction 2013, in drawing a distinction between administrative enquiries and formal criminal enquiries. The fact that immigration officers have powers … Continue reading Elsakhawy (Immigration Officers: Pace) Egypt: UTIAC 30 Jan 2018
Identification of Company’s Directing Mind In a prosecution under the 1968 Act, the court discussed how to identify the directing mind and will of a company, and whether employees remained liable when proper instructions had been given to those in charge of a local store. Held: ‘In the expression ‘act or default’ in section 23 … Continue reading Tesco Supermarkets Ltd v Nattrass: HL 31 Mar 1971
The citation of previous conviction is to be limited to the substance and effect, excluding only the formal parts. Citations: Gazette 08-Feb-1995, Independent 22-Nov-1994, Times 21-Nov-1994 Statutes: Theft Act 1968 27(3)(b), Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 73(2) Criminal Practice Updated: 09 April 2022; Ref: scu.86789
Justices may not hear evidence from accomplices in extradition proceedings. Also foreign intercept evidence may be used in support of extradition proceedings. Extradition proceedings are not criminal proceedings as such, but may be sui generis. Section 69 had no application to extradition proceedings so as to allow the admission of computer print-outs, and nor did … Continue reading Regina v Governor of Belmarsh Prison and Another Ex Parte Francis: QBD 12 Apr 1995
A tape recorded conversation with undercover officers was admitted without investigation. Citations: Times 31-Dec-1994 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 78 Jurisdiction: England and Wales Criminal Evidence Updated: 09 April 2022; Ref: scu.86553
Computer based evidence, which says what would have been said by the person making the record, remains hearsay, and is inadmissible without statutory provision otherwise. There is no exception for summary civil proceedings for the collection of community charge arrears. Legislation in the Magistrates court had made computer based evidence admissible but only for criminal … Continue reading Regina v Coventry Justices Ex Parte Bullard and Another: QBD 15 Apr 1992
Officers conducting a search presented a two paged document headed ‘warrant to enter and search premises’ which set out all the information required by section 15(6)(a). It did not, however, on its face identify the articles or persons to be sought in sub-paragraph (b). That information was contained in a separate schedule. Held: The court … Continue reading Regina v Chief Constable of Lancashire Ex Parte Parker and Another: QBD 27 May 1992
Statements made to police investigating a complaint were inadmissible but the Judge still had power to order their disclosure. Citations: Gazette 26-Jan-1994, [1994] 1WLR 359 Statutes: Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 104-3 Criminal Evidence, Criminal Practice Updated: 09 April 2022; Ref: scu.86333
An horrific rape had taken place. The defendant was arrested on a separate matter, tried and acquitted. He was tried under a false ID. His DNA sample should have been destroyed but wasn’t. Had his identity been known, his DNA could have been kept because of other convictions. He was arrested for the rape after … Continue reading Attorney General’s Reference No. 3 of 1999: HL 14 Dec 2000
The claimant appellant alleged that properties she owned were transferred to the first defendant under undue influence or other unconscionable conduct by the second and third defendants. The claim was dismissed. Three years later she claimed to set that judgment aside having been obtained by fraud. To support the allegation she brought evidence not available … Continue reading Takhar v Gracefield Developments Ltd and Others: SC 20 Mar 2019
Banker’s Liability for Negligent Reference The appellants were advertising agents. They were liable themselves for advertising space taken for a client, and had sought a financial reference from the defendant bankers to the client. The reference was negligent, but the bankers denied any assumption of a duty of care to a third party when purely … Continue reading Hedley Byrne and Co Ltd v Heller and Partners Ltd: HL 28 May 1963
The claimant sought a declaration that search warrants on his premises issued under money laundering suspicions were unlawful. The warrants did not comply with the 1984 Act, having failed satisfactorily to specify their purpose. Limited offers had been made for the return of certain documents and new orders sought under the 2002 Act. Held: The … Continue reading Cummins, Regina (on The Application of) v Manchester Crown Court: Admn 27 Jul 2010
The deceased was shot by police officers raiding his flat in 1998. The claimants sought damages for his estate. They had succeeded in claiming damages for false imprisonment, but now appealed dismissal of their claim for damages for assault and misfeasance. The judge below had accepted that the officer had acted in self-defence, and entered … Continue reading Ashley and Another v Sussex Police: CA 27 Jul 2006
The applicant had been committed to prison pending extradition proceedings brought by Hong Kong alleging substantial fraud. He challenged the committal on the grounds that since the allegations involved transmission of funds over international borders, if he had committed the acts alleged in the UK an offence would not have been committed, since the funds … Continue reading Regina v Governor of Pentonville Prison, Ex Parte Osman: QBD 30 Mar 1988
The applicants had had their requests for asylum refused. They complained that if they were removed from the UK, their article 3 rights would be infringed. If they were returned to Pakistan or Vietnam they would be persecuted for their religious faiths. Held: A distinction was to be made between domestic cases involving actions within … Continue reading Regina v Special Adjudicator ex parte Ullah; Regina v Secretary of State for the Home Department: HL 17 Jun 2004
The claimant sought damages from the first defendant for breach of copyright. An ex parte search order had been executed, with the defendant asserting his privilege against self-incrimination. As computer disks were examined, potentially unlawful images of children were found. The searching officer asked the court for directions as to what to do. Held: The … Continue reading C Plc and W v P and Secretary of State for the Home Office and the Attorney General: ChD 26 May 2006
COURT (PLENARY) The complainant asserted that his telephone conversation had been tapped on the authority of a warrant signed by the Secretary of State, but that there was no system to supervise such warrants, and that it was not therefore in ‘accordance with law’. The taps were based on a non-binding and unpublished directive from … Continue reading Malone v The United Kingdom: ECHR 2 Aug 1984
In each case the local authority sought to recover possession of its own land. In the Lambeth case, they asserted this right as against an overstaying former tenant, and in the Leeds case as against gypsies. In each case the occupiers said that the recovery of possession interfered with their right respect for their family … Continue reading Kay and Another v London Borough of Lambeth and others; Leeds City Council v Price and others and others: HL 8 Mar 2006
The bank challenged measures taken by HM Treasury to restrict access to the United Kingdom’s financial markets by a major Iranian commercial bank, Bank Mellat, on the account of its alleged connection with Iran’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes. The bank sought to have the direction given under section 7 of the 2008 Act. … Continue reading Bank Mellat v Her Majesty’s Treasury (No 2): SC 19 Jun 2013
The defendant appealed against an unsuccessful application to exclude evidence where it was claimed there had been incitement by an agent provocateur. Held: The appeal failed. There is no defence of entrapment in English law. All evidence which is relevant is prima facie admissible in a criminal trial, although the trial judge has a discretion … Continue reading Regina v Sang: HL 25 Jul 1979
The appellant challenged an order suspending him from practice as a solicitor for two years. He had previous findings of professional misconduct in failing to pay counsels’ fees. In the course of later disciplinary proceedings he was found to have misled the court as to the circumstances of a tribunal hearing when obtaining a stay. … Continue reading Aaron v The Law Society (the Office of the Supervision of Solicitors): QBD 13 Oct 2003
The appellants appealed from dismissal of their claims for wrongful imprisonment by the respondent. Each had attended at a police station for interview on allegations of theft. They had been arrested and held pending interview and then released. Mr Rowland had left a box in the safe security system under the appellants control. They variously … Continue reading Al-Fayed and others v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis and others: CA 25 Nov 2004
The claimant sought damages against the police, and wanted to bring in evidence of previous misconduct by the officers on a similar fact basis. They had been imprisoned and held for several years based upon admissions which they said they had obtained by improper pressure. Held: Evidence in civil cases is dealt with in two … Continue reading O’Brien v Chief Constable of South Wales Police: HL 28 Apr 2005
The claimant challenged the Order as regards the prescription of the morning-after pill, asserting that the pill would cause miscarriages, and that therefore the use would be an offence under the 1861 Act. Held: ‘SPUC’s case is that any interference with a fertilised egg, if it leads to the loss of the egg, involves the … Continue reading Regina (Smeaton) v Secretary of State for Health and Others: Admn 18 Apr 2002
The claimant, who had a criminal record from 1984, and 1993, had refused to accede to a requirement that he attend at a police station to provide a non-intimate sample so that a DNA record could be created for him to be placed on the national database. He said that though the request was made … Continue reading R, Regina (on The Application of) v A Chief Constable: Admn 24 Sep 2013
Second Hand Knowledge Supports Resaobnable Belief The plaintiff had been arrested on the basis of the 1984 Act. The officer had no particular knowledge of the plaintiff’s involvement, relying on a briefing which led to the arrest. Held: A reasonable suspicion upon which an arrest was founded need not be based on the arresting officer’s … Continue reading O’Hara v Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary: HL 21 Nov 1996
The claimant sought damages, alleging: ‘oppressive questioning, unlawful arrest, unlawful detention, unlawful search of her home, theft and / or failure to secure her home premises, and the wrongful declaration by the UKBA that she was an illegal migrant subject to removal under Immigration Act 1971 s.10 provisions’ and theft. The court now considered the … Continue reading Poonam v Secretary of State for The Home Department: QBD 18 Jul 2013
The appellants challenged rejection of their complaints that actions of police officers searching their ‘squats’ when executing search warrants, were unlawful in that they had been intended not as descrbed for the search for stolen goods, but rather to prevent protests against the forthcoming royal wedding. Held: The appeals failed: ‘the timing of the execution … Continue reading Pearce and Another, Regina (on The Application of) v Commissioner of Police of The Metropolis and Another: CA 18 Jul 2013
The court was asked to decide from whom DNA samples could lawfully be taken by the Police,and for how long they should be kept. The first respondent now said that a declaration of incompatibility of section 64(1A) could not be avoided. Held: (Majority: Lord Dyson, Lord Phillips, Lady Hale, Lord Judge and Lord Kerr. Dissenting: … Continue reading GC v The Commissioner of Police of The Metropolis: SC 18 May 2011
The system under which the registered keeper of a vehicle was obliged to identify herself as the driver, and such admission was to be used subsequently as evidence against her on a charge of driving with excess alcohol, was not a breach of her right to a fair trial. The right not to give evidence … Continue reading Stott (Procurator Fiscal, Dunfermline) and Another v Brown: PC 5 Dec 2000