AM I required To Talk To Police?

Queensland Law - Am I Required to Talk to Police - Lawyer / Solicitor Article.

Criminal Law Article written by Bill Potts (Queensland criminal defence lawyer who is experienced in the law regarding Rights and Obligations of Individuals during Police Investigations).

Am I Required to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - Lawyer / Solicitor Article

The law that governs your rights and obligations in respect of police interviews/questioning in Queensland is the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act, Queensland.

The Police are entitled to come to you and ask you questions at any time, but you are not always obligated to answer all of the questions they ask.  It is generally a good idea to find out what they want to talk to you about. 

When questioned by Police, keep in mind that anything you say can be used by them against you or some other person. You do not have to be at a Police Station providing a formal interview for the Police to use the information. Be aware that there is no such thing as "off the record," no matter how much a Police officer may insist otherwise.

Any information you provide to Police may be used by them in deciding whether or not to arrest or charge you or another person, and further it may be used in court against you or another person.

Am I Required to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - The Right to Remain Silent -   Lawyer / Solicitor Article

In general you have the right to remain silent.  This means you may refuse to answer questions of the Police, even where you originally agreed to provide a statement or participate in an interview. However, there are some questions that the Police have the right to ask you and which place an obligation upon you to answer. 

A common exception is if you are asked by Police to provide your name, date of birth and address. Under section 40 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland, you are obligated to provide those details where the Police reasonably suspect that you have committed an offence. To be on the safe side, you should always provide your correct name, date of birth and address where requested, as it can be an offence not to.

Note that a Police officer is obligated to warn you that it is an offence not to give them your correct name, date of birth and address.

The Police also have wide powers to question a person where:

• 1. They suspect that person has broken a traffic law (section 54 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland);
• 2. A person has witnessed an accident (section 56 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland);
• 3. There has been a noise complaint (section 588 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland);
• 4. They are investigating a death (section 601 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland);
• 5. It is in respect of the identity of a person in charge of a vehicle or an animal (sections 55 and 132 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland, respectively);
• 6. That person is seeking entry to a Watchouse, State Building, Special Events Site (sections 642, 549 and 566 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland, respectively).

Further there are some other questions that Police have power to ask under certain special laws, however it is not feasible to go through all those law here.

If you do not wish to answer questions and you're not sure whether you are obligated to, you have the right to ask to speak with a lawyer to get legal advice before answering any questions, but remember to provide your name, date of birth and address.

Am I Required to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - Attending the Police Station for an Interview - Lawyer / Solicitor Article

You do not have to attend the Police Station for questioning or an interview, unless you have been placed under arrest. The Police cannot force you to go to the police station unless they have arrested you first.

Accordingly, if the Police come to your house (but do not arrest you) or ring you and ask you to come to the police station, you do not have to go.

Sometimes the Police might seem as though you do not have a choice about going to the police station with them, if this is the case you should ask if you're under arrest. If they say that you are not, you need not follow their request.

The Police may continue to contact you despite you having expressed your desire not to give an interview.  If this occurs, it is best to just keep saying words to the effect, "I have been advised by my lawyer not to answer any questions" or simply "I do not wish to answer any questions" and then say nothing further.

The Police may tell you that you need to go to the police station and express your wish not to answer any questions on tape.  You do not have to do this, however you may have to give written confirmation.

Further, even if you do go to the police station, you still have the right to remain silent.

Am I Required to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - Can it Hurt to Give an Interview if I have Nothing to Hide? - Lawyer / Solicitor Article

Even if you feel that you have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide, giving an interview can still have negative consequences.

Where you take part in an interview, it will be recorded and you cannot take back anything you have said.  Further, what you have said can be used against you or another person in Court.  This can be particularly bad if you misunderstand the question and answer incorrectly.  It is not difficult to get muddled up even if you have done nothing wrong, because it is normal to feel a bit nervous especially when you are being accused of doing something illegal. 

Sometimes we may not realise we have done something illegal. Accordingly, we might say something that can lead to charges being laid that the Police may never have found about unless you had provided the information you did.  Remember it is job of the Police to find the information and evidence, not your job to hand it to them on a silver platter.  

Generally, giving an interview will not help you, even if it does not hurt you.  As often the Police will not be satisfied with your word and will keep investigating.

Always ask a lawyer for legal advice before you go for a police interview and if possible have a lawyer attend with you.

Do I have to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - Should I Participate in an Interview? - Lawyer / Solicitor Article

Deciding whether to take part in an interview can be a difficult decision to make, because there are always advantages and disadvantages of the decision you make. Every matter is unique, accordingly our advice can vary from one matter to the next as to whether someone should participate in an interview. 

It is particularly important to get advice, if you are thinking of participating in an interview.  Further, it is in your interest to have a solicitor present during the interview should you decide to participate to give you advice throughout the process.

It is important that you are aware that you have the right to refuse to participate in an interview where you are a suspect and that should you refuse to answer all questions, generally no unfavourable inference can be drawn from that refusal.  This means your refusal cannot be used against you in court to infer guilt. 

However, your refusal to answer some specific questions but not the rest, can sometimes be used to infer an admission to the particular question or statement you have refused to respond to if your conduct seems to suggest the same. This is just one of the disadvantages of participating in an interview.

Remember there are a number of laws that require a person to provide a response to police (as discussed above).  If the person fails to provide a response, the person may be charged with an offence. 

Advantages and disadvantages of taking part in an interview

Advantages

• 1. Your denial if the offence/s, if accepted, may result in the police not charging you with the offence.
• 2. Failure to respond to certain questions can be an offence, by fully participating in an interview you avoid this.
• 3. Early acceptance of guilt is seen as remorse and the court must take this into account when sentencing you.
• 4. Yourversion may be considered more credible by the court because you told the police what you knew at the time of your arrest and prior to viewing any witness statements.

Disadvantages

• 1. Your refusal to answer some specific questions but not the rest can be inferred as an admission to those questions, where your conduct seems to infer the same. For example: where you are calm, content and happily answer the police questions, until they ask you if you did certain acts.
• 2. It is not uncommon for Police to have insufficient evidence against you to prove the offence at the time you are interviewed. The reason why Police want to interview suspects is to get them to make admissions and to get further information to make their case stronger. It is very easy to say something that may help the police prove the case against you during an interview, as you will likely feel nervous and under pressure.
• 3. There may be consequences of implicating others in the crime, especially if you are likely to remain in custody.
• 4. Police will always be suspicious of your responses in an interview where you are the suspect for the offence being investigated. Accordingly, your side of the story is not likely to influence the Police in their decision as to whether they charge you or not.
• 5. You might say something that leads to further offences, that the Police may not have otherwise known about.
• 6. As previously noted, the process of being interviewed can often be very stressful and this may lead you to be confused or mistaken about what actually occurred. The words you say may not be what you meant or you may say something that is not entirely accurate because you were not sure but felt you had to say something.
• 7. The human mind is frail. As a result, often suspects who are interviewedwill give a version of events and then after reading the witness statements at a later date, they realise what they said was incorrect and remember what actually occurred.
• 8. It is always difficult for an accused person to convince a court that they were mistaken about the facts before and now are telling the facts accurately and truthfully or that they were misunderstood and have not changed their evidence.

Information that may assist you in making the decision

You or your solicitor may be able to obtain information from the police officer investigating your matter that may assist you in making your decision.  Details in respect of the following matters may assist you making this decision:

• 1. The evidence the police have against you? (ask them to show you the evidence)
• 2. Whether it is an offence to fail to provide an answer to any question that is likely to be asked?
• 3. How likely it is they will charge you if you give a statement?
• 4. The likelihood you will be granted bail?

Other issues you may want to consider is whether you intend to plead guilty or not and whether you have a defence.  If you are content that the police have all the evidence available for every offence you have committed and you intend to plead guilty then you may want to give an interview as a sign of remorse.

If you intend to plead not guilty, then giving an interview is almost never a good idea.  Further, where you do have a legitimate defence it is better to leave it to your solicitor to make submissions to the Police in attempt to get them to drop or at least downgrade the charge/s.

Do I have to Talk to Police - Your Rights and Obligations - If I Participate in an Interview can I have Someone with Me? - Lawyer / Solicitor Article

The short answer is 'yes', if the offence is indictable, i.e. a more serious offence heard by a higher court such as dangerous driving, assault, break and enter, stealing, grievous bodily harm. 

Major Offences

If you are an Adult

Section 418 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland gives you the right to have someone with you if you are being interviewed about an indictable offence. It gives you the right to speak to a friend or relative to advise them of your whereabouts and ask them to be present during the interview.  In addition you have the right to contact a lawyer of your choice to arrange to have him or her present during the interview.

The Police must suspend the interview for a reasonable period of time to allow you to make such calls and to allow any person to arrive.  A reasonable period of time will depend on the circumstances (e.g. how far away the person resides), but it will usually not be any more than 2 hours and may be less.

If you are a Child, Incapacitated or Disadvantaged

If you are a minor (i.e. under 17), have impaired capacity, or are a disadvantaged Aboriginal or Torres Straight Islander and are being interviewed by Police regarding an indictable offence, the Police are obligated to give you a chance to speak to a support person and that support person must be present with you during the interview (see sections 420, 421 and 422 of the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland).

The support person should be a parent or guardian (if you are a minor), lawyer, or person who is acting for you who works in an agency that deals with the law.  If you cannot get in contact with any of these people or none are available, you must then contact another relative or friend and as a last resort you can have a justice of a peace present.  Where the offence is in respect of harm done to another (eg: assault, sexual assault, rape, etc), your support person should not be the person whom made the complaint against you.

When you contact the Police to arrange an interview, (or when the Police have contact you), you should inform them which person you would like to have with you for support.

Minor Offences

If you are being questioned about a minor offence such as obscene language, obstruct police or possession of property suspected of being stolen then the law does require you to have a support person with you even if you are a minor, have impaired capacity, or are an Aboriginal or Torres Straight. 

This does not mean that you cannot request to contact a lawyer, relative or friend if you have been arrested for a minor offence.  If you request to speak with a lawyer, the Police are still obligated to give you access to arrange this.

Other Information

You have a right to be given a copy of any statement you make to police and a copy of any tape recording of the interview.

Further, under section 433 Police Powers and Responsibilities Act Queensland, if you are from another country and are unable to speak or write in English very well or where you have physical disability (e.g. you are deaf), you have a right to have an interpreter present during the interview.