Group items tagged

Every year, millions of people across Europe – innocent and guilty - are arrested and detained by the police. For some, their cases go no further than the police station, but many others eventually appear before a court. Many will spend time in custody both before and following trial. Initial attempts by the European Union to establish minimum procedural rights for suspects and defendants failed in 2007 in the face of opposition by a number of Member States that argued that the ECHR rendered EU regulation unnecessary. However, with ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, criminal defence rights are again on the agenda.