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What is confession evidence?
What are the legal provisions for confession evidence?
What is a confession in Police & Criminal Evidence Act 1984?
Can a disputed confession be used in evidence against an accused person?
What is a confession in a criminal case?
Does a confession fall under the hearsay rules?
Confession Evidence. A confession is defined in s 82 (1) PACE 1984 as ‘ any statement wholly or partly adverse to the person who made it whether made to a person on authority or not and whether made in words or otherwise’. This is a wide definition covering any statement made by the suspect or accused on which the prosecution seek to rely.
76 Confessions. (1) In any proceedings a confession made by an accused person may be given in evidence against him in so far as it is relevant to any matter in issue in the proceedings and is...
- Admissibility Pace Section 76
- Oppression
- Unreliability
- Exclusion of Evidence on The Ground of Unfairness - Pace Section 78
- Discretion to Exclude Unfair Evidence: Common Law
- Footnotes
1. The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.76, provides that a disputed confession cannot be used in evidence against an accused person unless the prosecution proves beyond reasonable doubt that it was not obtained: 1. "by oppression of the person who made it; or 2. in consequence of anything said or done which was likely, in the circumstances...
4. Oppression includes torture, inhuman or degrading treatment, and the use or threat of violence. 2 It should be given its ordinary dictionary meaning: 3"exercise of authority or power in a burdensome, harsh, or wrongful manner; unjust or cruel treatment of subjects, inferiors, etc, or the imposition of unreasonable or unjust burdens." 5. An inter...
6. Examples where confessions have been held to be made in circumstances making them likely to be unreliable include where a suspect was not given proper rest, 7 where a suspect was not cautioned at the start of an interview, 8 and where the police failed to make a proper record of an interview in breach of the Codes of Practice 9. 7. A confession ...
8. PACE section 78, provides that any evidence 11may be excluded if it appears to the court that "having regard to all the circumstances, including the circumstances in which the evidence was obtained, the admission of the evidence would have such an adverse effect on the fairness of the proceedings that the court ought not to admit it." 9. Section...
14. The court also has power at common law to exclude evidence where its probative value is outweighed by its prejudicial effect. This has been held to include where "if it is necessary in order to secure a fair trial for the accused." 17
PACE 1984, s.82(1). Back to reference of footnote 1PACE 1984, s.76(8). Back to reference of footnote 2R v Fulling [1987] 2 All ER 65. Back to reference of footnote 3R v Paris (1993) 97 Cr. App. R. 99; [1994] Crim LR 361, CA. Back to reference of footnote 4May 12, 2023 · What is a confession? A confession is broadly defined in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE 1984) as any statement which is wholly or partly adverse to the person who made it.
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The court has the power to exclude evidence, even though it may be admissible, if they feel it is too prejudicial (unfairly biased against the defendant). The court also has extra powers to do...
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Confession evidence: Legal provisions: The relevant legal provisions for this task are sections 76 – 82 of PACE 1984. Section 76 deals with confessions that are obtained as a result of oppression or which are unreliable.
Deciding on the admissibility of confessions. The actual process for deciding whether a confession can be admitted is a ‘voir dire’. That is essentially a mini-trial within or alongside the main trial. Section 76(2) of PACE gives guidance on this point.
