Have you been called in for questioning?

Have the police called you in for questioning in a criminal case?

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What happens when you are summoned for questioning? Do you have to show up? And what are your rights?

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An interview is a conversation between you and the police. The difference between an interrogation and a normal conversation is that interrogations are a bit more formal and both you and the police have to follow certain laws and rules.

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By questioning people who have information about the reported incident, the police will gather relevant information about what happened.

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The police must be objective in their investigation, and this also applies to the interview. If you are a suspect or accused in a case, the police must always collect both information that shows that you are guilty as a suspect and information that shows that you are innocent.

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Everyone who is summoned for questioning is obliged to appear before the police, but no one is obliged to explain themselves to the police.

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The distinction between being a suspect and a defendant

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When you are questioned by the police, you are either a victim, witness, suspect or accused in the case. The distinction between suspect and accused can be a little difficult to understand, but it depends, among other things, on whether the police have arrested you, searched your home or seized something from you.

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If a person has the status of a suspect, this will give them certain rights. They will obviously have the right to defend themselves against the suspicion. The person can also familiarize themselves with the case documents if this will not harm the investigation or others. Prior to questioning, the person must also be made aware of what the case is about and that they are not obliged to explain themselves. The person must also be informed that he or she has the right to be assisted by a defense counsel. However, as a rule, the public authorities will not pay for a defence counsel until the person has been charged, and in principle only if the prison sentence could be longer than six months.

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The status of an accused person carries additional rights that a suspect does not have. For example, the accused is entitled to a defense counsel at all stages of the proceedings. He also has the right to read the case file. Furthermore, the accused has the right to know the evidence against the charge and the evidence in favor of the charge. The accused may also refrain from commenting on matters that may contribute to his conviction. An accused person will also be entitled to compensation for unfair prosecution.

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Who can you bring with you?

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If you are a suspect or accused in a case and are being questioned, you have the right to have a lawyer with you; a defense lawyer. In some cases the defense counsel is paid for by the public authorities, in other cases you have to cover the costs yourself. There is free choice of defense counsel, which means that you can always choose the defense counsel of your choice.

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If you are a victim, you also have the right in some serious cases to be accompanied by a lawyer - a publicly funded legal aid lawyer - who can be present during questioning. In addition to a legal aid lawyer, the victim may also have a person you trust with you during questioning. This person should not be a witness in the case. In this case, he or she must be questioned before you, the victim, are questioned.

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Questioning of persons under 18 years of age

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If you are under 18 years old, suspected or accused and are being questioned, your parents or guardians and the child protection services must be notified and given the opportunity to be present during the questioning if possible.

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If you are a witness or victim and you are under 16 years old, your parents, guardian or someone else you trust should be allowed to join you.

If you have any questions about the article or want to talk about a case, you can contact us at Insa lawyers - at no cost to you here.