Police treatment of 17-year-old suspects challenged in high court

The treatment of 17-year-old suspects in police stations could be transformed if a legal challenge against the Home Office succeeds in overturning detention rules.

The charity Just for Kids Law has been granted permission to bring a judicial review of police practices when questioning teenagers. The organisation argues that everyone under the age of 18 should be treated as a juvenile – in line with the United Nations convention on the rights of the child.

The high court case involves a 17-year-old without a criminal record who was handcuffed and detained at Battersea police station, south London, for 12 hours on suspicion of robbery in April. The claim is being brought against both the Metropolitan police commissioner and the Home Office.

The teenager, who was eventually released without charge, was unable to tell his parents why he had disappeared and was informed that his mother could not come to the station to help him. By contrast, any child aged 16 and under is entitled to the support of a parent or someone termed "an appropriate adult" when arrested.

Police practice in treating 17-year-old juveniles like adults has been criticised by official watchdogs, including HM Inspectorate of Prisons, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and the Care Quality Commission.

It is widely recognised that the 1984 Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) creates an anomaly by dealing with 17-year-olds as adults inside police stations.

Earlier this year the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act prevented 17-year-olds being remanded to prison, requiring instead that they be held in local authority or youth detention accommodation.

The UK is a signatory of the United Nations convention on the rights of the child and should therefore respect its international obligations, Shauneen Lambe, executive director of Just Kids for Law, maintains.

She said: "In the case we are bringing, the child specifically asked officers to inform his mother of his arrest and ask for her assistance but this did not happen.

"Seventeen-year-olds can be held in police stations for up to 24 hours, sometimes without their parents knowing. It's only in police stations now that they are treated like adults. We want an appropriate adult to be there with them.

"Our client hadn't committed an offence … He was never charged. His parents didn't know where he was." His family only learned what had occurred when officers began searching his grandmother's house.

Lambe added: "Young people can be traumatised by their experiences at the police station and the role of the appropriate adult is to ensure and monitor the child's wellbeing."

The court papers also allege that the Metropolitan police is failing to comply with its statutory duty under the Children's Act 2004 which, it is said, gives the UN convention force in UK domestic law.

The case, likely to be heard early next year, is being supported by the Howard League for Penal Reform which has taken up the case of another 17-year-old who was arrested in the Midlands. Neither teenager can be identified because of their age.

Detained teenagers, deprived of the advice of an adult, often reject help from a duty solicitor in police interviews because they wrongly believe they are working for the police, Just for Kids Law warns.

The Home Office is resisting the claim on the grounds of cost and delay, warning that police might have to wait for a long time for an appropriate adult to arrive.

The Metropolitan police declined to comment. A Home Office spokesperson said: "The welfare of anyone remanded in custody is paramount. We believe the laws in place ensure the appropriate level of care for everyone, including 17-year-olds. It would be inappropriate to comment further whilst legal proceedings are ongoing."