T or F: A confession or other incriminating statements an accused person makes when he or she is denied access to a lawyer may not be used in trial. True T or F: The Supreme Court has ruled that all accused persons are always entitled to bail.
Apr 18, 2019 ¡ Focus is placed upon the law on the exclusion of incriminating statements obtained wrongfully from the accused person. The principal features of this law are the voluntariness test for the admissibility of such evidence, the oppression doctrine and the discretion to exclude incriminating statements where their prejudicial effect if admitted at the âŚ
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Self Incrimination. Self incrimination is making a statement that accuses oneself of a criminal offense that may lead to criminal prosecution now or in the future. Self-incrimination may occur directly or indirectly. Directly means that the suspect made a self-incriminating statement while being interrogated, while indirectly means that a ...
The legal rules on the admissibility of evidence are to be found mainly in the EA and the CPC. They are, broadly speaking, variations of rules that exist at common law. Thus, the admissibility of evidence is subject to the hearsay rule, character and similar facts rule, and so forth. Statements obtained from the accused by the police are admissible under section 258 (1) CPC provided certain conditions are met. First, the statement must have been obtained by a police officer of the rank of sergeant and above. 144 Secondly, as discussed below, the statement must not have been obtained by applying undue pressure and the court has a limited discretion to exclude the statement on the ground of prejudice.
At the commencement of the trial, the charge will be read and explained to the accused and his plea will be taken. 27 Judges are conscious of their duty to ascertain the truth even in cases where the accused elects to plead guilty. The court must be satisfied, before recording his plea, that his choice is free and informed, 28 in particular, that the accused âunderstands the nature and consequences of his pleaâ and âintends to admit to the offence without qualificationâ. 29 Where the accused is charged with an offence punishable with death, the High Court will not record a guilty plea unless the accused has been committed to stand trial and evidence is led by the prosecution to prove its case. 30
The principal sources of law that govern the obtaining and admissibility of such statements are the Criminal Procedure Code (âCPCâ), 2 the Evidence Act (âEAâ) 3 and, to some extent, the common law. The goal of ascertaining the truth is not explicitly declared in the CPC or the EA.
7 The law vests the police with an array of investigative powers such as the power of arrest, entry, and search and seizure.
The interest of the Prosecution in a criminal trial is not to obtain a conviction at any costs, and a procedure whereby the Prosecution first lays its cards on the table is an acknowledgment that it is the duty of the Prosecution to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt and to assist the court by placing before it all relevant facts and evidence so that the truth may be ascertained⌠From the perspective of the accused, an early disclosure of the Prosecutionâs case enables him to make preparations for his defence, and although the mutual exchanges of information makes a limited incursion into the accusedâs right to silence, it ensures that relevant facts are not concealed from the trial judge. Reciprocal discovery, if properly implemented, therefore enhances the reliability and transparency of the criminal justice process in searching for the truth.
An important function of the police is crime detection. The law confers on the police an array of powers to perform this function. Most pertinent for our purposes is the power to detain and question suspects. 56 The Police Force Act (PFA) 57 contains provisions on âduties and discipline of police officersâ. 58 Under section 28 PFA, senior police officers may be disciplined under the authority of the Public Service Commission. Disciplinary proceedings against senior police officers are regulated by the Public Service (Disciplinary Proceedings) Regulations. For officers below the rank of inspector, disciplinary proceedings are provided for in the Police Regulations. The Internal Affairs Office is an investigation entity within the Singapore Police Force which is tasked to conduct investigations into disciplinary offences and crimes committed by police officers. 59 Police improprieties in the course of conducting investigation, including interrogation of suspects, are referred to the Internal Affairs Office for investigation. Such improprieties may constitute a disciplinary offence under section 40 of the Police Force Act as well as a criminal offence. 60 While criminal prosecution 61 of, and civil claims against, 62 police officers do occur, more often than not the matter is dealt with as a disciplinary offence. 63
The goal of the prosecution is not to secure a conviction at all costs⌠. 71 Because the decision to charge an accused is made after a process of careful consideration, the Prosecutor would be expected to pursue the case with vigour to secure the conviction of one whom he sincerely believes to be guilty. Yet, the point is that the desire to secure a conviction flows from his basic commitment to justice: the Prosecutor desires to convict the guilty only because that is what justice demands. The fact that the Prosecutorâs ultimate duty is to justice also means that the Prosecutor has a duty to withdraw a charge or, even, to apply for a criminal revision if clear evidence emerges to disprove the guilt of the accused.
The rights of the accused are: the right to a fair trial; due process; to seek redress or a legal remedy; and rights of participation in civil society and politics such as freedom of association, the right to assemble, the right to petition, the right of self-defense, and the right to vote. Civil and political rights form ...
Currently, in many countries with a democratic system and the rule of law, criminal procedure puts the burden of proof on the prosecution â that is, it is up to the prosecution to prove that the defendant is guilty beyond any reasonable doubt.
Civil and political rights form the original and main part of international human rights. They comprise the first portion of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (with economic, social and cultural rights comprising the second portion).
First-generation human rights, often called âblueâ rights, deal essentially with liberty and participation in political life. They are fundamentally civil and political in nature, as well as strongly individualistic: They serve negatively to protect the individual from the excesses of the state.
searches and seizures: A legal procedure used in many civil law and common law legal systems whereby police or other authorities and their agents, who suspect that a crime has been committed, conduct a search of a personâs property and confiscate any relevant evidence to the crime.
Background. The Fourth Amendment (Amendment IV) to the United States Constitution is the part of the Bill of Rights ( [fig:9477]]) guarding against unreasonable searches and seizures, as well as requiring any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause.
The Fifth Amendment, Self-Incrimination, and Double Jeopardy. The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, protects against abuse of government authority in a legal procedure. Learning Objectives.
Admission of guilt made by the accused during his examination, if found clear, unambiguous and ungratified, the court may consider it as evidence and proceed to convict him. If it is made during trial, it should be read over during examination of accused as a whole.
Normally confession made before police or under police custody is inadmissible ( Sections 25 and 26, Evidence Act). But when some incriminating article is recovered following such confession, it is admissible according to section 27 of the Evidence Act which provides that when any fact is deposed to as discovered in consequence of information received from a person accused of any offence, in the custody of a police officer, so much of such information whether it amounts to a confession or not, as relates distinctly to the fact thereby discovered, may be proved. [18]
Law of evidence allows a person âwho is a witness to state the facts related to either to a fact in issue or to relevant fact, but not his inference. It applies to both criminal law and civil law. It is quite difficult to define properly the evidentiary value which we get from serving as or based on evidence. On the other hand, the accused is a person who is in a trial for committing a crime. So the statement of the accused does not have greater evidentiary value as the person who has already committed crime might not that much reliable whom can the court trust. The defendant (accused) is, however, entitled to rely on the fact that he is of previous good character as making it less likely that he would have committed the offence. If there is any room for doubt, his good character may be thrown in the scales in his favor. [1]
Confessional Statement: The confessional statement either inculpatroy or exculpatory, if not referred to the accused or the main aspect of the confessional statement of the accused was not brought to his notice during his examination, in ordinary course, it should not be used against him.
[10] An accused may be convicted even on a retracted confession if it is inculpatory but corroboration is required, but this rule of prudence, however, does not require that each and every circumstance mentioned in the confessional statement must be separately and independently corroborated then the rule will be meaningless, as an independent evidence itself would afford sufficient basis of conviction and it would be unnecessary to call the confession in aid. [11] [12]
Exculpatory statement is one wherein the accused making it does not implicate him. Without any other direct or circumstantial evidence qualifying the said confession, it is of no avail to the prosecution for sustaining the order of conviction. There may be cases where maker does not implicate himself and, on the other hand, implicate other persons in his confessional statement. It is then a so-called confession which alone cannot be relied upon as against its maker and also against other co-accused. [13]
(a) Extra judicial confession by its very nature is weak type of evidence. It is unsafe to base conviction of an accused on his extra judicial confession alone. The value of such confession as evidence depends upon the veracity of witnesses to whom it was made. [15] With precaution such confession can be taken into consideration along with other evidence and attending circumstances. If the other evidence and circumstances are found meagre lacking independent corroboration, the extra judicial confession, even if found to be true, cannot be the basis of conviction against its maker. [16] If extracted upon physical assault or inducement, it has no value. [17]
And there can be countless other consequences that come with being falsely accused, such as legal fees, negative publicity, loss of parental custody, unjust prison time or other sentences, and loss of employment and other positions. The good news is that you may have a path for legal recourse to gain some justice in your situation.
Defending Against False Accusations. The first step you probably want to take when being falsely accused is getting a lawyer. Remember, after all, that you may have a case for suing for damages at the end of this. But that will require a not guilty verdict for you, which is much more likely with a good lawyer.
The Danger of False Accusations. False accusations occur when someone is accused of doing something they didnât do. This can happen in any number of ways, varying from: Knowingly falsely accusing someone of a crime. Unintentionally falsely accusing someone of a crime. Accusing the wrong person of a crime.
Accusing the wrong person of a crime. Saying something untrue about someone to someone else. Writing something untrue about someone and publishing it. Thereâs any number of reasons why someone would accuse someone of something intentionally.
One of the first options for pursing a civil lawsuit against a false accuser is defamation, which comes in two forms: slander and libel.
One of the first options for pursing a civil lawsuit against a false accuser is defamation, which comes in two forms: slander and libel. A defamation suit in general is just one that claims that the defendant made some kind of statement about the plaintiff that was untrue, but there are several aspects that are required to find a guilty conviction. These include:
A defamation suit in general is just one that claims that the defendant made some kind of statement about the plaintiff that was untrue, but there are several aspects that are required to find a guilty conviction. These include: A false statement was made. The statement was either published or communicated to a third party.
The right of access is also preventive in that it provides a fundamental safeguard against coercion and ill-treatment of the suspect in custody. One of the lawyerâs main tasks at the custody and investigative stage is to ensure respect for the suspectâs right not to incriminate himself and for his right to remain silent.
On the substance of the right itself, the Court explained that the suspect must be able to engage with his lawyer from the moment of arrest. This includes the right to consult prior to interview. The lawyer must be able to confer with his client in private and take confidential instructions.