'You can't go home until you answer the officers' questions': Police interviewing of vulnerable suspects

Holmes, Jennifer

Abstract

This paper outlines my PhD study into the police interviewing of vulnerable suspects, within the context of homicide investigations. During such investigations suspects can be detained over several days and interviewed on multiple occasions (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984), yet existing literature into homicide investigation is limited. This research seeks to identify how the police interview vulnerable suspects and explores the impact of third parties such as appropriate adults, legal advisors and interpreters.

The methodology for this research involved reviewing a selection of audio and audio-visual police interviews, examining custody records and undertaking interviews with those who have participated in police suspect interviews. This paper will present early stage findings of fieldwork undertaken in three police forces in England and Wales, which will focus on whether suspects' vulnerabilities are accommodated during interviews, and the interventions made during interviews by third parties.

Citation

Holmes, J. (2019, September). 'You can't go home until you answer the officers' questions': Police interviewing of vulnerable suspects. Paper presented at 19th Annual Conference of the European Society of Criminology, Ghent, Belgium

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: 19th Annual Conference of the European Society of Criminology
• Conference Location: Ghent, Belgium
• Start Date: Sep 19, 2019
• Deposit Date: Sep 26, 2023
• Keywords: Police interviewing, vulnerable suspect, appropriate adult
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/11139062