The written exam assesses knowledge and understanding of basic criminal law, the law of evidence, police procedures, the role of the counsellor and the skills required. If you are single and your gross annual income is less than £11,590, you are financially entitled to legal aid in the Magistrates Court. Our goal is to make your police station as simple as possible and minimize the time you have to spend there. Our interviewing and negotiation skills mean we have an impressive track record of successfully releasing our clients without charges or ongoing investigations. It is strongly recommended that you seek legal advice or assistance from the police before and during an interview. Make sure you think clearly and that nothing you say can be misunderstood by having a lawyer present to understand the situation and direct trick questions or tactics. Legal aid is unlikely if you are only questioned as a witness, but you are still entitled to the presence of a lawyer at your own expense. There is a program that allows very low-income recipients to obtain legal assistance for interviews in the absence of police, conducted by government or municipal departments such as the Department of Work and Pensions, Environmental Health, Trade Standards or Housing Law Enforcement. Freemans Solicitors` criminal defence team is expert in representing individuals in these interviews on private terms.
Whether you have been charged with a crime, arrested, charged or released on bail, it is important that you contact us immediately and speak to one of our specialist lawyers at JD Spicer Police Station. The main advantage lies in the seniority of the person who gives advice during the interview. We have a well-deserved reputation for providing the highest possible advice during the interview. As part of legal aid, our highly qualified advisers at the police station offer free representation during the interview. However, a higher level of experience is available for those who pay privately, our coordinator having 25 years of experience or senior or police station lawyers attending the interview. Only the private service is available for non-police interviews. The legal aid plan is paid by the government in the form of a fixed fee, regardless of the amount of work required at the police station in each case. Nevertheless, unlike many companies. The Freemans Solicitors Police Station team will always attend a client appointment free of charge.
However, the flat-rate nature of the legal aid scheme limits the amount of work that a company can prepare for the interview before attending it or the distance that can be covered geographically. There are no such restrictions on private financing. Once you have sought legal advice, the police will not be able to question you until you receive it, with a few exceptions. You can also fill out our application form. And a member of the team of representatives from our police station will contact you. Throughout our dealings with investigators, we will make representations to convince them that there is not enough evidence to take the matter to court and to prevent police from recommending that bail be denied or unreasonable conditions imposed. There are a variety of out-of-court orders for minor offences, usually if you admit guilt. These are more likely, but by no means exclusively for children. There are triage systems, precautions and conditional warnings for children. Other options include community decisions, fixed fines (police-administered fines), and administrative penalties for non-police investigations. If we believe a case can be proven and you admit guilt, Freemans will always ask for an amicable decision, as this will not result in a criminal record. We offer a premium paid service for representation at the police station that can help you get the right result for you.
In addition to the actual presence at the police station, the resources available for legal assistance are very limited. However, we can agree fees with you to advance your case and get the best result. For example, we may speak to witnesses on your behalf and obtain their testimony, attend police interviews with your defense witnesses, employ investigators, obtain CCTV or documentary evidence on your behalf, or examine alibis. This is done in order to make written representations to the police and/or CPS so as not to take your case to court. Alternatively, if it is too early to reveal some of the defense evidence, they may be prepared for any trial while the events are still fresh in the minds of witnesses. While you are at the police station, you will be interrogated. What you say in these interviews is extremely important because anything you say can be used as evidence against you. You may be offered legal advice over the phone instead of a mandatory lawyer if you are suspected of committing a less serious crime, such as disorder. The consultation is free and independent of the police. In many cases, especially those where it is one person`s word versus another`s, this may give the CPS no choice but to charge you with participating in court if the accusation is credible, if the accusation is credible. The Freemans Solicitors Police Station team has the expertise and experience to determine when this poses a risk and where the referral of your defence is likely to influence the decision to prosecute in your favour.
This may be the case, for example, with allegations of sexual offences. While you are at the police station, you will be questioned and anything you say can be used as evidence in your case. Freeman`s lawyers at the police station will always first check whether the evidence available to the police is legally sufficient to answer it in an interview to avoid any risk that you will inadvertently support the case against you. A classic example is that of an unrepresented person who declares in an interview that he acted in self-defense. We would have first determined that the police had enough evidence to properly identify you as the person involved in the incident. The laws on the identification evidence to be used in court are complex, but declaring that you acted in self-defense makes proof of correct identification irrelevant. If the police have not obtained the identity documents correctly, the proceedings against you will end. For the most serious crimes, such as murder, the police may ask to detain you for up to 36 or 96 hours. Our expert team of lawyers and representatives from London, Birmingham or Manchester police stations can advise you on a range of offences and represent you in police stations, including but not limited to: By calling our helpline, we can connect you with a variety of community and legal resources, such as: Links for civil rights cases, domestic violence, food and housing insecurity, employment issues, tenant rights, immigration assistance, mental health services, reintegration and post-incarceration, and more. If you (and/or your partner) receive income other than benefits, your application will be subject to a full means test by the court to determine if you are financially eligible for legal aid.
If your income exceeds £21,000 a year, you are not financially entitled to legal aid from the Magistrates Court. If you are questioned by the police on bail or have been arrested, you are still entitled to FREE legal advice and representation. You will not incur any costs for this legal representation. In some circumstances, such as when you are asked about a minor offence, this right is limited to telephone counselling. may be detained if the person referred to it is no longer in police custody or in the custody of a court, or is in the custody of a court but has been released on bail. In the case of offences considered relatively minor, the police themselves decide whether the case will be brought before the courts. However, for anything considered serious or complex, the decision is referred to a lawyer from the PSC Public Prosecutor`s Office for decision. This applies, for example, to allegations related to sexual offences, serious violence or significant financial loss. Allegations that do not necessarily have to be serious for probable punishment will be referred to the CPS if they are deemed sensitive, such as all cases of alleged domestic violence or racial aggravation.
The legal test that the police or CPS must apply before bringing a case before the courts is that a court that correctly applies the laws of evidence will most likely find the person guilty of no. All of our legal and tactical advice is primarily aimed at ensuring that this test is not met as much as possible. After your arrest, the police will take you to the police station where you will be taken into custody, usually in a cell. They will likely search you and your personal belongings will not be confiscated and returned until after you are released or your file is closed. The police can arrest anyone they have reason to believe is involved in a crime. They may use “reasonable force” when they stop you, such as restraining you to prevent you from fleeing. They can also be handcuffed and searched. Each lawyer on our team is qualified under the Police Station Representative Accreditation Programme and has significant skills to assist and represent clients in London and UK police stations in certain serious cases.