Suspects still left in limbo? The continuing challenge of pre-charge bail

Dehaghani, Roxanna; Smith, Tom; Newman, Daniel

Abstract

Pre-charge bail has undergone significant reform in recent years. In 2017, changes introduced by the Policing and Crime Act 2017 placed time limits on pre-charge bail. Notwithstanding this attempt to regulate the use of bail more effectively, police found a helpful workaround in the form of "release under investigation", an informal status which proved hugely problematic for both victims and suspects. As a result, the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 introduced further changes to the law in this area, designed to address the detrimental effect on the former, yet seemed to show little concern for the latter. This article, drawing on original interview data with criminal defence solicitors in Wales and analysis of the legislative framework, examines the changes to pre-charge bail and the negative impact this has had and may continue to have on suspects. It explores the role of police culture regarding these changes, offers suggestions for how the most recent reforms may be interpreted, and urges that suspects' rights be more robustly protected.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 19, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Aug 1, 2023
• Publication Date: 2023
• Deposit Date: Jul 17, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 2, 2023
• Journal: Criminal Law Review
• Print ISSN: 0011-135X
• Publisher: Sweet and Maxwell
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Issue: 8
• Pages: 492-511
• Keywords: Reader in Law, Cardiff University Police bail; Release under investigation; Suspects; Time limits; Wales
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10946383