NCJ Number
104654
Date Published
1986
Length
10 pages
Annotation
The British Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 is flawed in failing to enhance police effectiveness significantly and in not providing for effective mechanisms to increase police accountability to the community.
Abstract
The act's focus on police stop-and-search powers is misplaced, since empirical evidence indicates that this practice yields relatively few convictions for the offenses it is intended to counter. The provision for extended detention without charging a suspect is also a questionable practice for enhancing police investigative effectiveness to any great extent, since detention beyond 24 hours is seldom required. The citizen safeguards of the act are weakened by their primary dependence on police internal review. There are no significant mandates that provide for an independent community review of police practices and procedures. The act should have provided for a system of lay visitors or monitors who would make investigative visits to police stations to assess detention practices and conditions. Also, the act should have mandated an independent complaints system rather than the police-supervised complaints system provided in the act. The act will cost enormous amounts of money due to the additional time and personnel required to implement its provisions. The money could be better used to address significant crime control problems. 12 notes.