A comparitive analysis of arrest and questioning of accused in India, U.K. and USA.

1. COMPARITIVE CRIMINAL
PROCEDURE
ARRESTANDQUESTIONINGOFACCUSED
ININDIA,UKANDUSA

2. ARREST
Arrest involves restriction of liberty of a person arrested and
therefore, infringes the basic human rights of liberty.
Though not defined in any law in India; however, the term arrest
is ‘an apprehension of a person by legal authority resulting in
deprivation of his liberty’. In English law, arrest consists of the
actual ‘seizure’ or ‘touching of a person’s body’ with a view to his
detention.

3. ARREST AND QUESTIONING OF
ACCUSED IN INDIA
1. Arrest with warrant:
(Chapter VI - Section 70 to 81 of Cr.P.C.)
A warrant of arrest issued by any Court may be directed to any
Police officer to execute the warrant and the police officer or any
other person executing a warrant of arrest shall, without
unnecessary delay, bring the person arrested before the Court
before which he is required by law to produce such person.
Provided that, such delay shall not in any case, exceed 24 hours
exclusive of the time necessary for the journey from the place of
arrest to the Magistrate’s Court.

4. 2. Arrest without warrant:
(Chapter V under sections 41 to 60A of Cr.P.C.)
The following officers/personnel are empowered to arrest without
warrant:
(A) Any Police officer,
(B) Private person
(C) Magistrate
(A) Any Police Officer: Any Police Officer, of whatever rank, may
without an Order from a Magistrate and without a warrant, a person
on fulfilment of the conditions laid down in section, 41, 41A, 41B and
42 of Cr. P. C. [mention sections 41, 41A, 41B and 42 of Cr.P.C.]

5. (B) Private Person: The provision for arrest by
private person is provided in section 43 of Cr.P.C.
[write section 43 of Cr.P.C.]
(C) Magistrate: The provision for arrest by
Magistrate is provided in section 44 of Cr.P.C.
[write section 44 of Cr.P.C.]

6. ARREST HOW MADE
Section 46 of Cr.P.C. provides how an arrest is to
be made.
[write section 46 of Cr.P.C.]
Moreover, section 49 provides that the person
arrested shall not be subjected to more
restraint than is necessary to prevent his
escape.

7. INFORM THE ARRESTED PERSON
Section 50 of Cr.P.C. provides that every police officer or
other person arresting any person without warrant shall
forthwith communicate to him full particulars of the
offence for which he is arrested or other grounds for
such arrest. Where a police officer arrests without
warrant any person other than a person accused of a
non- bailable offence, he shall inform the person
arrested that he is entitled to be released on bail and
that he may arrange for sureties on his behalf.

8. PERSON ARRESTED TO BE TAKEN
BEFORE MAGISTRATE
Section 56 provides that a police officer making an arrest
without warrant shall, without unnecessary delay and subject
to the provisions herein contained as to bail, take or send the
person arrested before a Magistrate having jurisdiction in the
case, or before the officer in charge of a police station.
Section 57 provides that no police officer shall detain in
custody a person arrested without warrant for a longer period
than under all the circumstances of the case is reasonable,
and such period shall not, in the absence of a special order of
a Magistrate under section 167, exceed twenty- four hours
exclusive of the time necessary for the journey from the place
of arrest to the Magistrate' s Court.

9. CASE
In the case of Central Bureau of Investigation vs.
Kishore Singh (2010) the Apex Court held that
when a person is brought to the police station and
locked up there, obviously he is under arrest.

10. ARREST AND QUESTIONING
IN U.K.
There are three ways in which a person may be
brought before a criminal court. The three ways are:
• by summons
• by arrest on warrant
• by arrest without a warrant
The common law of this country, which is the oldest
form of law, gave the power of arrest ‘to any person’
for many offences. Later, with the creation of statute
law, which includes powers of arrest for certain
offences, the common law powers were largely
replaced.

11. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 provides
both the police and any other person the power to
arrest. These powers fall into two groups:
• ‘Indictable offences’ – under the Police and
Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984 (offences triable
at Crown Court).
• Powers contained in other Acts – The powers of
arrest which were contained in numerous Acts
have mostly been abolished, although they will still
specify that it is an offence under that Act. These
are preserved powers of arrest and they are mostly
contained within Schedule 2 of PACE 1984.

12. ARREST BY POLICE WITHOUT
WARRANT
Section 24 of PACE 1984 provides that:
A constable may arrest without warrant –
• Anyone who is about to commit an offence
• Anyone who is in the act of committing an
offence
• Anyone whom he has reasonable grounds for
suspecting to be about to commit an offence
• Anyone whom he has reasonable grounds for
suspecting to be committing an offence.

13. Similar to section 42 of Cr.P.C. in
India, section 24(5)(a) and 24(5)(b) of
PACE 1984 provides that the
constable may arrest a person for
ascertaining name and address of
any person.

14. INFORMATION TO BE GIVEN ON
ARREST
When a person is arrested they must be told:
• that they are under arrest
• the grounds for the arrest, i.e. the offence for
which they have been arrested, and
• the reason(s) for the arrest being necessary

15. ARREST BY PERSONS OTHER THAN
CONSTABLES
Section 24A of PACE provides that a person other than a
constable may arrest without warrant:
• Anyone who is in the act of committing an indictable
offence
• Anyone whom he or she has reasonable grounds for
suspecting to be committing an indictable offence.
A constable can arrest for any offence, but a person other
than a constable is restricted to arresting for offences that
are indictable. These are offences that are triable at the
Crown Court and include those that are triable either way,
i.e. at Magistrate’s Court or at Crown Court.

16. ARREST ON WARRANT
The warrant to arrest is issued by the Court. If
the warrant is to arrest a person for either an
offence (such as assault) or for failing to appear
at court or on a commitment warrant the
constable does not need to have the warrant
with him when he makes the arrest. If the
arresting officer has the warrant then he is to
ensure that the accused person fully
understands both the fact that they are being
arrested and the grounds for the arrest.

17. ARREST IN USA
If a police officer has probable cause to believe
that a crime has been committed, the officer may
make an arrest without an arrest warrant. When
making a lawful arrest, an officer may use force
that is reasonable and necessary to overcome
resistance. An officer may not use excessive force
if it is not warranted under the circumstances.

18. Based on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Miranda v.
Arizona, after making an arrest, the police must inform the
detainee of their Fifth Amendment and Sixth Amendment
rights in order for statements made during questioning to be
admissible as evidence against the detainee in court. A
Miranda warning is required only when a person has been
taken into custody (i.e. is not free to leave) and is being
interrogated, and the results of this interrogation are to be
used in court.

19. THANKYOU