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Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2016

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

Please note:

All reference to 'Parts' and 'sections' are from the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2016. For other versions of these Explanatory Notes, see More Resources.

  1. Introduction

  2. Overview of the Act

    1. Part 1 – Arrest and Custody

      1. Chapter 1 – Arrest by police

        1. Arrest without warrant

          1. Section 1 – Power of a constable

          2. Section 2 – Exercise of the power

        2. Procedure following arrest

          1. Section 3 – Information to be given on arrest

          2. Section 4 – Arrested person to be taken to police station

          3. Section 5 – Information to be given at police station

          4. Section 6 – Information to be recorded by police

      2. Chapter 2 – Custody: person not officially accused

        1. Keeping person in custody

          1. Section 7 – Authorisation for keeping in custody

          2. Section 8 – Information to be given on authorisation

          3. Section 9 – 12 hour limit: general rule

          4. Section 10 – 12 hour limit: previous period

          5. Section 11 – Authorisation for keeping in custody beyond 12 hour limit

          6. Section 12 – Information to be given on authorisation under section 11

          7. Section 13 – Custody review

          8. Section 14 – Test for sections 7, 11 and 13

          9. Section 15 – Medical treatment

        2. Investigative liberation

          1. Section 16 – Release on conditions

          2. Section 17 – Conditions ceasing to apply

          3. Section 18 – Modification or removal of conditions

          4. Section 19 – Review of conditions

      3. Chapter 3 – Custody: person officially accused

        1. Person to be brought before court

          1. Section 20 – Information to be given if sexual offence

          2. Section 21 – Person to be brought before court

          3. Section 22 – Under 18s to be kept in a place of safety prior to court

          4. Section 23 – Notice to parent that under 18 to be brought before court

          5. Section 24 – Notice to local authority that under 18 to be brought before court

        2. Police liberation

          1. Section 25 – Liberation by police

          2. Section 26 – Release on undertaking

          3. Section 27 – Modification of undertaking

          4. Section 28 – Rescission of undertaking

          5. Section 29– Expiry of Undertaking

          6. Section 30 – Review of undertaking

      4. Chapter 4 – Police interview

        1. Rights of suspects

          1. Section 31 – Information to be given before interview

          2. Section 32 – Right to have solicitor present

          3. Section 33 – Consent to interview without solicitor

        2. Person not officially accused

          1. Section 34 – Questioning following arrest

        3. Person officially accused

          1. Section 35 – Authorisation for questioning

          2. Section 36 – Authorisation: further provision

          3. Section 37 – Arrest to facilitate questioning

      5. Chapter 5 – Rights of suspects in police custody

        1. Intimation and access to another person

          1. Section 38 – Right to have intimation sent to other person

          2. Section 39 – Right to have intimation sent: under 18s

          3. Section 40 – Right of under 18s to have access to other person

          4. Section 41 – Social work involvement in relation to under 18s

        2. Vulnerable persons

          1. Section 42 – Support for vulnerable persons

        3. Intimation and access to a solicitor

          1. Section 43 – Right to have intimation sent to solicitor

          2. Section 44 – Right to consultation with solicitor

      6. Chapter 6 – Police powers and duties

        1. Powers of police

          1. Section 45 – Use of reasonable force

          2. Section 46 – Common law power of entry

          3. Section 47 – Common law power of search etc.

          4. Section 48 – Power of search etc. on arrest

          5. Section 49 – Taking drunk persons to designated place

        2. Duties of police

          1. Section 50 – Duty not to detain unnecessarily

          2. Section 51 – Duty to consider child’s wellbeing

          3. Section 52 – Duties in relation to children in custody

          4. Section 53 – Duty to inform Principal Reporter if child not being prosecuted

      7. Chapter 7 – General

        1. Common law and enactments

          1. Section 54 – Abolition of pre-enactment powers of arrest

          2. Section 55 – Abolition of requirement for constable to charge

          3. Section 56 – Consequential modification

        2. Code of practice about investigative function

          1. Section 57 – Code of practice about investigative functions

        3. Disapplication of Part

          1. Section 58 – Disapplication in relation to service offences

          2. Section 59 – Disapplication in relation to terrorism offences

        4. Powers to modify Part

          1. Section 60 – Further provision about application of Part

          2. Section 61 – Further provision about vulnerable persons

        5. Interpretation of Part

          1. Section 62 – Meaning of constable

          2. Section 63 – Meaning of officially accused

          3. Section 64 – Meaning of police custody

    2. Part 2 – Search by Police

      1. Chapter 1 – Search of person not in police custody

        1. Lawfulness of search by constable

          1. Section 65 – Limitation on what enables search

          2. Section 66 – Cases involving removal of person

          3. Section 67 – Public safety at premises or events

          4. Section 68 – Duty to consider child’s wellbeing

        2. Miscellaneous and definitions

          1. Section 69 – Publication of information by police

          2. Section 70 – Provisions about possession of alcohol

          3. Section 71 – Matters as to effect of sections 65, 66 and 70

      2. Chapter 2 – Code of practice

        1. Making and status of code

          1. Section 73 – Contents of code of practice

          2. Section 74 – Review of code of practice

          3. Section 75 – Legal status of code of practice

        2. Procedure applying to code

          1. Section 76 – Consultation on code of practice

          2. Section 77 – Bringing code of practice into effect

    3. Part 3 – Solemn Procedure

      1. Section 78 – Proceedings on petition

      2. Section 79 – Pre-trial time limits

      3. Section 80 – Duty of parties to communicate

      4. Section 81 – First diets

      5. Section 82 – Preliminary hearings

      6. Section 83 – Plea of guilty

    4. Part 4 – Sentencing

      1. Maximum term for weapons offences

        1. Section 84 – Maximum term for weapons offences

      2. Prisoners on early release

        1. Section 85 – Sentencing under the 1995 Act

        2. Section 86 – Sentencing under the 1993 Act

    5. Part 5 – Appeals and Sccrc

      1. Appeals

        1. Section 87 – Preliminary pleas in summary cases

        2. Section 88 – Preliminary diets in solemn cases

        3. Section 89 – Extending certain time limits: summary

        4. Section 90 – Extending certain time limits: solemn

        5. Section 91 – Certain lateness not excusable

        6. Section 92 – Advocation in solemn proceedings

        7. Section 93 – Advocation in summary proceedings

        8. Section 94 – Finality of appeal proceedings

      2. SCCRC

        1. Section 96 – References by SCCRC

    6. Part 6 - Miscellaneous

      1. Chapter 1 – Publication of prosecutorial test

        1. Section 97 – Publication of prosecutorial test

      2. Chapter 2 - Support for Vulnerable Persons

        1. Section 98– Meaning of appropriate adult support

        2. Section 99 - Responsibility for ensuring availability of appropriate adults

        3. Section 100 - Assessment of quality of appropriate adult support

        4. Section 101 - Training for appropriate adults

        5. Section 103 - Duty to ensure quality assessment takes place

        6. Section 104 - Elaboration of regulation-making powers under this Chapter

        7. Section 105 - Procedure for making regulations under this Chapter

        8. Section 106 - Other powers of Ministers unaffected

      3. Chapter 3 - Notification if parent of under 18 imprisoned

        1. Section 107 – Child’s named person to be notified

      4. Chapter 4 – Statements and procedure

        1. Statements by accused

          1. Section 109 – Statements by accused

        2. Use of technology

          1. Section 110 – Live television links

            1. Inserted section 288H – Participation through live television link

            2. Inserted section 288I – Evidence and personal appearance

            3. Inserted section 288J– Effect of postponement

            4. Inserted section 288K – Specified hearings

            5. Inserted section 288L – Defined terms

          2. Section 111 – Electronic proceedings

      5. Chapter 5 – Authorisation under Part III of the Police Act 1997

        1. Section 112 – Authorisation of persons other than constables

      6. Chapter 6 – Police Negotiating Board for Scotland

        1. Section 113 – Establishment and functions

        2. Section 114 – Consequential and transitional

    7. Schedule 1 – Breach of Liberation Condition

      1. Paragraph 1 – Offence of breaching condition

      2. Paragraph 2 – Sentencing for the offence

      3. Paragraph 3 – Breach by committing offence

      4. Paragraph 4 – Matters for paragraph 3(2)(b)

      5. Paragraph 5 – Matters for paragraph 3(2)(c)

      6. Paragraph 6 – Evidential presumptions

    8. Schedule 2 – Modifications in Connection With Part 1

    9. Schedule 3 – Police Negotiating Board for Scotland

  3. Parliamentary History

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

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Explanatory Notes

Text created by the Scottish Government to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Acts of the Scottish Parliament except those which result from Budget Bills.

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