Correct on the date of publication - 12 May 2025
Question:
Following a roadside breath test, a juvenile is arrested on suspicion of driving with excess alcohol in his blood etc. Can the police station procedures take place without an appropriate adult being present?
Answer:
Whilst it may be considered desirable to have an appropriate adult present, it is not imperative.
A juvenile or person who is mentally disordered or otherwise mentally vulnerable must not be interviewed regarding their involvement or suspected involvement in a criminal offence or offences, or asked to provide a written statement under caution or record of interview in the absence of an appropriate adult (unless certain conditions exist para. 11.15 Code of Practice C). However, this provision does not prevent drink / drive procedures being conducted in the absence of an appropriate adult.
In Director of Public Prosecutions vs. D (1992) it was held that the making of a requirement to provide a sample under section 7 Road Traffic Act 1988 does not constitute an interview and, in particular, neither does the contemporaneous recording of those procedures.
It would also be permissible to require a juvenile arrested under drink / drive provisions to provide a sample of blood or urine within the procedures of the Road Traffic Act, since the provisions of PACE and Code of Practice D – relating to the taking of intimate and non- intimate samples are of no application to any procedure under Road Traffic Act 1988, sections 4 to 11, Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, sections 15 & 16, or the Transport and Works Act 1992, sections 26 to 38 (a range of provisions relating to driving etc., with excess alcohol/drugs etc).
The foregoing principles also extend to mentally disordered and mentally vulnerable persons so long as the police are satisfied that the individual understands the procedures (Francis v Director of Public Prosecutions (1997)).
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