A necessary component of a police investigation into an alleged offence, and the decision of whether to charge a suspect, often involves the police conducting a video record of interview with the person suspected of committing the offence/s.
It’s important to understand what your rights are before attending a police station for an interview.
WHAT’S THE PURPOSE OF A VIDEO RECORDED POLICE INTERVIEW?
Often the police have gathered a significant amount of evidence in their investigation before they conduct an interview with a suspect. The aim of a police interview is not to give the interviewee an opportunity to provide an explanation and version of events. If that were the case, why would the interview be recorded?
Rather, a video record of the interview is an effort by the police to attain more admissible evidence against the suspect, thereby strengthening the prosecution case against that person.
People who are requested to attend at a police station for a video record of interview often believe participating in the interview and providing answers to police questions will sort things out. They believe that going in there and telling the truth will make it all go away. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
The police often anticipate that the suspect will deny the charges before an interview is conducted. Police will have a plan of attack in their questioning designed to back the interviewee into a corner and commit to a particular position. Due to matters such as the passing of time or the fact that the interviewee may have been intoxicated at the time of the alleged offence, their recollection of the events they are being questioned about may be mistaken or distorted in some way. It is only when they see the evidence down the track that their recollection about what had occurred becomes clearer.
The interviewee’s version of events may, in these circumstances, change upon viewing all the evidence. In these circumstances, the prosecution may later claim in court that because the interviewee’s story has changed, they have therefore not been truthful or credible in their answers to the police. It is important to remember that the police regularly conduct interviews with suspects and are experienced in questioning and cross-examination of a suspect.
HOW DOES A POLICE INTERVIEW COMMENCE?
An interview starts with the police ensuring that your rights have been properly explained to you. If you have been arrested, the police should ensure that you understand:
- that you have a right to know why you have been arrested and what offence/s you are suspected to have committed;
- that you have a right to contact a lawyer (and that the police will make the necessary arrangements for that to occur prior to, or during the interview);
- that you have a right to contact a friend or relative to let them know where you are;
- that you have a right to an interpreter if needed;
- that you have a right to medical treatment if necessary;
The police will then provide you with a caution. The caution ensures that you understand that you are not obliged to answer any police questions, but that whatever you do say will be recorded and may be used against you as evidence in a court of law. It is very important to be aware of your right to decline to answer police questions.
Although there are some questions you are required by law to answer, generally, you are not required to answer any police questions other than providing your name, date of birth and address. If the police tell you that you are required by law to answer a particular question and you are not sure what to do, you should call a criminal lawyer for legal advice immediately.
If you have a scheduled interview with the police it is important that you seek legal advice from your criminal lawyer before attending for the interview. Attaining legal advice from an experienced criminal lawyer about whether to participate in a video recorded interview and answer police questions is very important.
Talking to the criminal lawyer prior to the interview also enables you to foreshadow to them that you may later need them at court to represent you on a bail application, in the event that the police refuse you bail.
SHOULD I PARTICIPATE AND ANSWER QUESTIONS IN A VIDEO RECORDED INTERVIEW?
You may think that by refusing to participate in an interview indicates that you have things to hide or a guilty conscience. It’s important to understand that every person has a legal right to silence and a right to refuse to answer police questions. A Magistrate or jury can make no adverse inference or find from the fact that an accused person chooses to exercise that legal right to silence. To do so would render that legal right as being meaningless.
No person can be forced to be placed in a situation where they might say something adverse to their already delicate and fragile situation. Often, simply making a mistake by providing a wrong name of another person, giving an incorrect time or date, or coming across as nervous, aggressive or untrustworthy during the interview is enough for the prosecution to rely on at trial.
It’s important to be aware that the burden of proving guilt rests at all times with the prosecution. The right against self-incrimination is fundamental to our criminal justice system.
Often, the police will have already conducted an investigation and attained evidence against you prior to the interview being conducted. They most likely have already made a decision on whether or not to lay charge/s, regardless of what you say and how you answer the questions. The only reason they’re conducting an interview is an attempt to attain further admissible evidence.
It is therefore advised that you choose to exercise your legal right to silence and not answer any questions during the course of your video recorded interview. You can do that by alerting the police from the beginning of the interview that you do not propose to answer any questions, and thereafter reply with the words “no comment” to every question asked of you.
Chase Murphy Lawyers are highly experienced in dealing with the police on criminal and traffic offence matters, should you be concerned about an interview with the police, contact our office to speak with one of our lawyers.
