Arrested People

If a person is arrested, they have the right to:

• Keep silent
• Be told, in a language that they understand, that they have the right to keep silent and what will happen if they do not keep silent
• Not to be forced to make a confession or to admit anything that could be used against them during their trial
• Be taken to court within 48 hours of their arrest
• Be charged and released, either on warning or on bail, unless there is a good reason to keep the person in jail

Detained People

If a person is detained (kept in jail or a police cell), either while they are waiting for their trial, or after they have been sentenced, they have the right to:

• Be told in a language they understand why they are being detained
• Be informed immediately that they can have a lawyer
• Choose their own lawyer
• Have the government pay for a state lawyer, if they cannot afford one and injustice might result if they are not given a lawyer
• Be kept in proper conditions, including being allowed exercise and getting food
• Accommodation, food, reading material and medical treatment at the state’s expense
• Speak to and be visited by the person’s husband, wife or partner, their family, a religious counselor, and their own doctor
• Go to court to challenge the reasons for their detention, and to be released if there are not lawful reasons for being detained

Accused People

A person accused of committing a crime must be given a fair trial. This includes the right to:

• Be treated as an innocent person
• Be told what the charge is against them
• Be told that they have a right to a lawyer
• Their own lawyer or a lawyer paid for by the government, if they cannot afford one and injustice might result if they are not given a lawyer
• Be given enough time to prepare their defence
• A public trial in an ordinary court
• Be present during their trial
• Keep silent
• Not be forced to give evidence against themselves
• Call witnesses and challenge any witnesses used against them
• Be tried in a language that they understand, or to have an interpreter
• Not be convicted for doing something which became a crime after they did it, in other words, if it was not a crime when they did it
• Be sentenced within a reasonable time if they are convicted
• Be sentenced to the least serious punishment, if the punishment for what they have done has changed since they did it
• Appeal against their conviction and sentence to a higher court
• Have their case reviewed by a higher court
• Not be tried twice for the same crime

If the state gets evidence against a person by going against one of their rights, this evidence will not be allowed in court.