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If the police have contacted you, or stopped you on the street, it is because they believe you have committed an offense and intend to arrest and charge you with something. It is not a social call.
Be polite to the police. Angering them will not help your situation and often results in their finding additional reasons to charge you and additional charges.
You are entitled to ask them why they are stopping you. They must have "reasonable and probable grounds." However, cooperate with them at this stage. Do not play lawyer, or be rude or insulting. But be very discreet in answering their questions. Do not lie, but if you do not wish to answer a question, just say so.
You will not talk your way out of an arrest if they intend to charge you. The officer is doing his job and a good arrest looks good on his record.
The officer may ask you to sign his notes. Decline politely. Do not sign it under any circumstances. It is like giving a stranger a signed blank cheque. Police often fabricate their notes to cover errors, make up evidence and cover their actions.
An officer may phone and request that you attend the police station in order to be arrested and charged.
Ask for time to consult a lawyer before coming in. Usually the police will agree.
You do not generally want to turn yourself in on a Friday afternoon or a holiday and be held over in custody until Monday.
If you do not attend the officer may obtain a warrant for your arrest, or may arrest you directly without warrant if he believes you were committing a crime.
The police can do a pat down search if they arrest you. Do not resist.
The police cannot strip search you unless there are very good reasons. They cannot just do it to embarrass, humiliate or intimidate you, although they frequently do so in violation of the law
If you have been contacted by the police or if you expect to be charged with a criminal offence, you should seek legal advice from a lawyer.
The police may formally arrest you at any point. They must tell you when you are under arrest, under what charge and give you your rights.
When a police officer decides to arrest you and lay a charge, you may or may not taken to the police station.
The police have two options:
Release You: You can be released on your promise to appear. This can be done at the scene or they may take you to the station and then release you.
Detain You: The officer can detain you, take you to the station, and lock you up in a cell pending a bail hearing. If they hold you, you will be locked up in a jail cell for a while and will be brought before the Court or a Justice of the Peace for a bail hearing.
Disclosure of your alibi is not required. However if it will definitely clear you, you should give them your alibi or at least tell them your lawyer will disclose it.
Click here Refer to "R. v. Cleghorn" if you wish more on the law of disclosing alibis.
The Supreme Court of Canada has held in R. v. Russell, 67 C.C.C. 28, that where an alibi is not set up at an early stage in the proceedings, the trial judge is entitled to comment on the fact and the alibi is thereby considerably weakened.
Keep it simple. Do not elaborate. Tell them just enough to verify your alibi and nothing more. Then shut up. If you don't disclose your alibi in a "timely" manner, the alibi will be given less weight in court. The logical assumption is that you had time to fabricate an alibi and get someone to lie for you.
Politely refuse to answer any other questions.
If you are wanted by the police, it is best if you arrange to turn yourself in. First, get a lawyer to find out what the police want and to set up a convenient time for you to turn yourself in so that the police can arrest or book you.
The lawyer may be able to get the police to commit to releasing you after being charged.
If not, the lawyer can usually arrange a convenient time to have the arrest take place so that you can be processed and transferred to court in a timely fashion so that you are likely to get bail the same day. If you get remanded to jail for any reason, it will be extremely difficult to arrange bail, consult your lawyer or reach anyone "outside."
What is an Appearance Notice or Promise to Appear?
When you have been arrested, the office may issue you an appearance notice or similar notice. It is basically a promise that you will appear as ordered in court at a specified date, time and location to answer to the charge listed in the notice
Typically there is also a promise to appear at the police station in order to be finger printed and photographed under The Identification of Criminals Act.
People very understandably, often take offence to having their finger prints and photographs taken.
Regardless, make certain you attend to have them taken at the appointed time. If you do not attend you will be charged with failure to appear, for which the crown quite often seeks a jail sentence.
Once acquitted, you can ask that the fingerprints and photos be destroyed. However, the local police will keep records of your arrest on file forever.
The police wish to obtain as many fingerprints as possible in order to better solve crimes. Police often fingerprint those charged with petty hybrid offences when there is no need for fingerprints at that time. These fingerprints, however, can be used to identify the person in future crimes.
While they are supposed to be destroyed when acquitted, it is not likely that they are. The police play fast and loose with the rules when it suits them.
They also lie in court and falsify their note books and records.
Understand this: Police records and files on you will never be erased. Records of every contact with you, every complaint by a neighbour, arrest, charge, acquittal, stay, discharge, diversion and conviction are kept permanently by the police regardless of the outcome.
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