Appeal from conviction of an offence of escape from lawful custody contrary to common law. The central issue in the case is whether at material time when the appellant admittedly absconded he had escaped from lawful custody. The appellant was aged 15 and was remanded, but no secure accommodation was immediately available. Though asked to wait, he absconded.
Held: ‘In order to determine whether an order made under section 23 of the 1969 Act was custodial in nature which was a question of fact it was necessary to concentrate on the moment when it was alleged that the defendant absconded. In the instant case the justices had remanded him to local authority accommodation under section 23 without attaching conditions and that sanction gave power to the local authority to detain the defendant. He had been told not to move by the youth offending team member so that it was unrealistic to suggest he did not know he was being detained and that he was not entitled to simply run off. In those circumstances there was ample evidence upon which the justice could have concluded that his immediate freedom of movement was under the direct control of the youth team member and that by absconding he was escaping from her custody.’
Judges:
Gage J
Citations:
[2003] EWHC 878 (Admin), (2003) 167 JP 486, [2003] Crim LR 560
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Dhillon, Regina v CACD 23-Nov-2005
The defendant had been arrested and then taken to hospital for treatment. On completion of his treatment, he could not find the constable, so went home. He now appealed from conviction of escape contrary to common law.
Held: The prosecution . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Crime
Updated: 20 November 2022; Ref: scu.185030