The most important thing is to stay calm. You are required to provide your name and address. It is an offence to provide a false name or address. If you have been arrested, there is a process that the police will follow and by staying calm you will be in a best position to help yourself and exercise your rights properly.

At the first opportunity, ask to use a phone to contact a lawyer at Turnbull Lawyers for Legal Assistance.

You may be required to attend a Police Station with the arresting officer/s for the purpose of an Interview. Do not make any statements or sign anything without seeking legal advice first. Do not speak with the arresting officer/s about what you are alleged to have done. There is no such thing as an “off the record” conversation. You SHOULD ASSUME that the police are recording everything you say.

In a criminal interview you have a right to silence, and you cannot be compelled to answer questions. Before you choose to answer questions in a police interview, you should consider your options very carefully.

You will be cautioned and read your rights, which includes your right to speak with a family member and/or a legal practitioner. You must be given a reasonable opportunity by the police to contact a family member and/or a lawyer. If you have not already done so, you should always exercise your right to contact a legal practitioner when your rights are read to you.

As a general rule, particularly when you do not have access to a lawyer, you should exercise your right to silence in a criminal interview. You can do so by answering “No Comment” to all questions asked of you.

If there is sufficient evidence to constitute a case against you, you will most likely be charged. Answering questions will, as a general rule, not detract from the police case that already exists – it will only put your opposing view. If there is not enough evidence to warrant you being charged, then refusing to answer questions cannot provide more evidence. As a matter of law, a Court cannot draw any adverse inference against you as a result of you exercising your right to silence.

Whether you answer questions or not should not affect your chances of being charged. Either there is sufficient evidence to charge you or there is not. The contents of your record of interview will in normal circumstances be admissible evidence against you. If you make admissions in the interview (even if you do not realise that you have), those admissions may provide enough evidence for you ultimately to be found guilty of the offence for which you are being investigated.

You should never answer questions on a selective basis, you should either answer no comment to every question or provide your full version of events.

You will be requested to provide your fingerprints. If you refuse, the police can use reasonable force to take your fingerprints.

You might be advised by a Police officer that unless you cooperate and answer their questions you will not be given bail. Do not be intimidated into answering questions on that basis.

You can refuse if police request for your photograph to be taken or for you to participate in re-enactments or identification parades. The police do not have the power to compel you to comply with these requests.

The summons contains important information about the charges issued against you, and when and where you are required to attend court. You need to provide the summons to a lawyer for further advice immediately.

You should immediately seek legal advice.

If you fail to attend court on the date specified in the summons (or do not arrange for the matter to be adjourned by a solicitor) a warrant will be issued for your arrest.

.

Most of the time the police will agree to grant bail at the police station. You will be required to provide an undertaking (or promise) to appear at court on a specified date and additional conditions may be imposed requiring you to report on a regular basis to a police station or to reside at a particular address.

If the police refuse to give you bail, you have the right to apply for bail before the court or a bail justice.

Bail may be opposed by the police on the grounds that:-

(a) you will fail to appear in court;

(b) you pose a risk to the public;

(c) you will threaten or interfere with witnesses;

(d) you will commit further offences.

For most charges there is a presumption in favour of granting bail. In the case of murder, serious drug trafficking and serious offences involving firearms, there is a presumption against bail.

If the police refuse you bail outside court hours, you may apply for bail to a bail justice. If you are refused bail by a bail justice, the police must then bring you before the Magistrates’ Court as soon as possible. You will then have the right to apply for bail in Court before a Magistrate.

If applying for bail before a court, your application must be carefully and properly prepared. If you are refused bail by a Magistrate while represented by a lawyer, you can only bring another application for bail in the Magistrates’ Court if you can establish new facts or circumstances.

You should always seek legal advice and representation before applying for bail before a court. A properly prepared bail application requires care and time. In serious cases, a rushed application may increase the risk of bail being refused.

You need to carefully consider the advice of your lawyer as when to apply for bail. In some cases, you will be encouraged to wait until the brief of evidence is served. Preparing a bail application where the police have all of the information, and your lawyer doesn’t, is a calculated risk. The consequences of bail being refused where you have a lawyer are that if it more difficult to make a further application for bail. As outlined above, you will need to establish new facts and circumstances and in some cases this is very difficult.

The police ordinarily require a search warrant to enter and search private premises unless:-

(a) you consent to the search;

(b) the police have reasonable grounds for suspecting that a serious offence is or has been committed and entry is necessary to make an arrest;

(c) the police have reasonable grounds for believing that illegal drugs are located on the premises;

(d) the police have a warrant for the arrest of a person located on the premises;

(e) there has been a breach of an intervention order.

If the police attend at your premises requesting entry and you are unsure of your rights, you should immediately seek legal advice.

A search warrant does not require you to assist the police in locating items.

You should read the warrant carefully and ensure that you understand what the police are seeking.

If the warrant states that the police are authorised to search for particular things, this does not entitle them to seize other items not specified in the warrant. If you are in any doubt as to the scope of the warrant, you should immediately seek legal advice.

You should remain present during the search to ensure that you see what is identified and taken away by the police. You should retain a copy of a list of items seized by the police. If you are not given a list, ask for one.

You will normally be cautioned prior to the commencement of a search. Anything that you say or do may be used in evidence against you

DO NOT make any statements or speak to the police during the search in relation to what it is that you are alleged to have done. There is no such thing as an “off the record” conversation. You should operation on the assumption that the police are recording everything you say.

This information is intended to provide a basic summary of your rights and obligations when involved in a criminal investigation. This information is not intended to be a substitute for receiving comprehensive legal advice from a lawyer, nor does it cover every possible situation. You should always exercise your right to contact a lawyer and obtain advice.