Effects of the "P.A.C.E." provisions on detention and questioning: Some preliminary findings

The article presents findings from a preliminary study of the effects of the implementation of Parts IV and V of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. These cover the detention,
questioning and treatment of arrested persons held in custody in police stations. The areas discussed include the time people are held in detention and their access to legal advice. Attention is also given to resource implications for the police and to possible effects on detection rates. It is suggested that the new procedures regulating custody may cause some problems for the police, but that this is a price worth paying, both to offset new powers
acquired by the police outside the station, and to minimise the risk of abuse of coercive powers within the station.