Know your rights
Rights are not rewards for good behaviour. They are limits on state power, and they apply to everyone — including people the police believe to be guilty.
This page is general public education, not legal advice. Law and procedure change, and every case turns on its facts. For advice on a specific situation, consult a lawyer or your State Legal Services Authority, which provides free legal aid.
Your rights if you are arrested
An arrest is not a punishment. It is a step in a legal process, and that process has rules the police must follow.
You must be told why
You have the right to be informed of the grounds of your arrest. This is a constitutional protection under Article 22(1), not a courtesy. You cannot be held without being told why you are being held.
Someone must be told where you are
The police must inform a relative, friend, or nominated person of your arrest and where you are being held. An arrest should not mean disappearance. Ask which station you are being taken to, and insist that someone is told.
You are entitled to a lawyer
You have the right to consult and be defended by a lawyer of your choice, including during questioning. If you cannot afford one, you are entitled to free legal aid through the Legal Services Authority. This is a right, not a concession.
You must be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours
Excluding the time needed for travel to the court, you must be produced before a magistrate within twenty-four hours of arrest. The police cannot hold you beyond this without a magistrate's authorisation.
You have the right to a medical examination
You are entitled to be medically examined at the time of arrest and periodically during custody. Injuries should be recorded. If you have been hurt, ask for a medical examination and ask that the injuries be written down.
You cannot be compelled to confess
Article 20(3) protects you against being compelled to be a witness against yourself. A confession extracted through violence, threat, or inducement is not evidence — it is an offence. Custodial violence is not investigation.
Women should ordinarily not be arrested after sunset and before sunrise, and searches of women must be conducted by a woman officer. Children in conflict with the law are dealt with under the juvenile justice framework, not ordinary criminal procedure. Ask for these protections by name.
If someone you know is picked up
The first hours matter most. These are the things to do, roughly in order.
Find out which police station
Establish the station and the officer's name or number if you can. Write down the time you were told, and who told you. If the police will not say, this itself should be recorded.
Ask for the arrest memo
An arrest memo should record the time, date, and place of arrest, and be attested by a witness — usually a family member or a respected member of the locality. Ask to see it and ask for a copy.
Contact a lawyer immediately
If you cannot afford one, contact the District Legal Services Authority. Free legal aid is available and you are entitled to it. Do not wait to see how things develop.
Write down everything, with times
Who you spoke to, when, what was said. Keep call records and messages. This contemporaneous note is often the single most useful document later.
Insist on a medical examination
If there is any possibility of injury, ask for a medical examination and ask that findings be recorded in writing. Request a copy of the medical report.
Ensure production before a magistrate
Confirm that the person is produced within twenty-four hours. If they are not, raise it with the magistrate and with senior police officers, in writing.
Escalate lawfully
If rights have been denied, there is an ordered path — senior officers, the magistrate, the Human Rights Commissions, the courts.
Record safely. Do not interfere.
Recording the police in a public place is not an offence. Obstructing them is. The distinction matters, and it protects you.
Keep your distance
Film from a safe distance. Do not step between officers and the person they are dealing with, do not touch anyone, and do not argue while recording. Your value is as a witness, not a participant.
Capture context, not just violence
If you can do so safely, record what came before and what came after. Say the date, time, and location aloud on the recording. Capture the station name, vehicle numbers, or landmarks if visible. Context is what turns footage into evidence.
Preserve the original file
Do not crop, edit, filter, or re-record the video off another screen. Keep the original unedited file exactly as your device captured it. Back it up somewhere safe as soon as you can. An edited file loses much of its evidentiary value.
Think about who else is in the frame
Victims, children, and bystanders have privacy interests too. Before circulating anything publicly, consider whether you are exposing someone to retaliation, identification, or humiliation. Ask the person's consent where you can.
Circulating is not the same as documenting
A video shared widely and immediately may cause harm, compromise a case, or expose a victim. A video preserved carefully, with its context recorded, may support a complaint for years. Prefer the second.
Stay calm and do not resist. Comply with lawful instructions, state clearly that you are recording in a public place, and do not delete anything. If your device is taken, note the officer's name and number, the time, and ask for a receipt. Record the facts as soon as you are able.
If this happened to you or someone you know, you can submit a private, text-only report. If you found an already-public post, news report, or official record about it, you can submit that public source instead. Submitting a report does not notify authorities, verify the account, or guarantee publication, and this is not an emergency or legal-assistance service.