Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Court says police must give names

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

POLICE OFFICERS who do not give suspects their names and station addresses before making searches on the street are breaking the law, a High Court judge ruled yesterday.

The ruling came in the case of 22-year-old Mustapha Osman, from Tottenham, north London, who won his appeal against sentence after he was stopped and searched on his way to a fair in east London. The decision by Lord Justice Sedley and Mr Justice Collins leaves police authorised to carry out searches with no option but to give to each and every person they stop "name and police station" details. Lord Justice Sedley suggested a possible solution was for officers to carry packages of paper slips with the details on to save endless repetitions of their names.

Lord Justice Sedley said: "Whilst there is an element of formality and perhaps an unjustified use of time in a police officer having to recite name and station to every person searched, it is Parliament's view that such formality is of great importance in relation to civil liberties."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in