Police Cheat Sheet

What is the European Convention on Human Rights?
The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) protects the human rights of people in countries that belong to the Council of Europe.

All 47 Member States of the Council, including the UK, have signed the Convention. Its full title is the ‘Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms’.

What is the Council of Europe?
Formed in 1949, the Council of Europe is completely separate from the European Union and much larger, with 47 members compared to the EU’s 28. The UK became a Council member 24 years before it joined the EU. The UK’s membership of the Council would be unaffected if it left the EU.

What it consists of:
The Convention consists of numbered ‘articles’ protecting basic human rights. The UK made these rights part of its domestic law through the Human Rights Act 1998.
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/42/contents

History of the Convention
The Council of Europe was founded after the Second World War to protect human rights and the rule of law, and to promote democracy. The Member States’ first task was to draw up a treaty to secure basic rights for anyone within their borders, including their own citizens and people of other nationalities.

Originally proposed by Winston Churchill and drafted mainly by British lawyers, the Convention was based on the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It was signed in Rome in 1950 and came into force in 1953.

What does the Convention protect?

• The right to life (Article 2)
• Freedom from torture (Article 3)
• Freedom from slavery (Article 4)
• The right to liberty (Article 5)
• The right to a fair trial (Article 6)
• The right not to be punished for something that wasn’t against the law at the time (Article 7)
• The right to respect for family and private life (Article 8)
• Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion (Article 9)
• Freedom of expression (Article 10)
• Freedom of assembly (Article 11)
• The right to marry and start a family (Article 12)
• The right not to be discriminated against in respect of these rights (Article 14)
• The right to protection of property (Protocol 1, Article 1)
• The right to education (Protocol 1, Article 2)
• The right to participate in free elections (Protocol 1, Article 3)
• The abolition of the death penalty (Protocol 13)

The European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights applies and protects the rights and guarantees set out in the European Convention on Human Rights.

Right to life

1. Everyone’s right to life shall be protected by law. No one shall be deprived of his life intentionally save in the execution of a sentence of a court following his conviction of a crime for which the penalty is provided by law.

2. Deprivation of life shall not be regarded as inflicted in contravention of this Article when it results from the use of force which is no more than absolutely necessary:

- In defense of any person from unlawful violence.

- In order to effect a lawful arrest or to prevent the escape of a person lawfully detained.

- In action lawfully taken for the purpose of quelling a riot or insurrection.

Definition: This Article means that nobody, including the Government, can try to end your life. It also means the Government should take appropriate measures to safeguard life by making laws to protect you and, in some circumstances, by taking steps to protect you if your life is at risk.

Public authorities should also consider your right to life when making decisions that might put you in danger or that affect your life expectancy.

If a member of your family dies in circumstances that involve the state, you may have the right to an investigation. The state is also required to investigate suspicious deaths and deaths in custody.

The courts have decided that the right to life does not include a right to die.

Restrictions to the Article:
There are certain situations where the "Right to life" does not apply.

• Stop them carrying out unlawful violence.
• Make a lawful arrest.
• Stop them escaping lawful detainment.
• Stop a riot or uprising.

How the Article protects you:

• Torture (mental or physical)
• Inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
• Deportation or extradition if there is a real risk you will face torture or inhuman or degrading treatment in the country concerned

As you would expect, public authorities must not inflict this sort of treatment on you. They must also protect you if someone else is treating you in this way. If they know this right is being breached, they must intervene to stop it. The state must also investigate credible allegations of such treatment.

Definition:

Torture
Torture occurs when someone deliberately causes very serious and cruel suffering (physical or mental) to another person. This might be to punish someone or to intimidate or obtain information from them.

Inhuman
Inhuman treatment or punishment is treatment which causes intense physical or mental suffering. It includes:

• Serious physical assault.
• Psychological interrogation.
• Cruel or barbaric detention conditions or restraints.
• Serious physical or psychological abuse in a health or care setting.
• Threatening to torture someone, if the threat is real and immediate.

Degrading
Degrading treatment means treatment that is extremely humiliating and undignified. Whether treatment reaches a level that can be defined as degrading depends on several factors, including duration, physical or mental effects, and the sex, age, vulnerability, and health of the victim. This concept is based on the principle of dignity—the innate value of all human beings.

Restrictions to the Article:
Your right not to be tortured or treated in an inhuman or degrading way is absolute. This means it must never be limited or restricted in any way. For example, a public authority can never use lack of resources as a defense against an accusation that it has treated someone in an inhuman or degrading way.

Prohibition of slavery and forced labour

1. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude.

2. No one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour.

3. For the purpose of this Article the term ‘forced or compulsory labour’ shall not include:

• Any work required to be done in the ordinary course of detention imposed according to the provisions of Article 5 of this Convention or during conditional release from such detention
• Any service of a military character or, in case of conscientious objectors in countries where they are recognised, service exacted instead of compulsory military service
• Any service exacted in case of an emergency or calamity threatening the life or well-being of the community
• Any work or service which forms part of normal civic obligations

Definition:

• Slavery is when someone actually owns you like a piece of property.
• Servitude is similar to slavery – you might live on the person’s premises, work for them and be unable to leave, but they don’t own you.
• Forced labour means you are forced to do work that you have not agreed to, under the threat of punishment.

Restrictions to the Article:

Your right to be protected against slavery and servitude is absolute, which means it can never be restricted.

The right relating to forced labour is also absolute. However, it does not apply to work that:

• You have to do as part of a prison or community sentence
• The government requires you to do in a state of emergency, such as after a natural or man-made disaster
• Is part of normal civic obligations, like jury service

How the Article protects you:

It focuses on protecting individuals’ freedom from unreasonable detention, as opposed to protecting personal safety.

You have a right to your personal freedom. This means you must not be imprisoned or detained without good reason.

If you are arrested, the Human Rights Act provides that you have the right to:

• Be told in a language you understand why you have been arrested and what charges you face
• Be taken to court promptly
• Bail (temporary release while the court process continues), subject to certain conditions
• Have a trial within a reasonable time
• Go to court to challenge your detention if you think it is unlawful
• Compensation if you have been unlawfully detained

Definition

1. Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be deprived of his liberty save in the following cases and in accordance with a procedure prescribed by law:

The lawful detention of a person after conviction by a competent court

The lawful arrest or detention of a person for non-compliance with the lawful order of a court or in order to secure the fulfilment of any obligation prescribed by law

The lawful arrest or detention of a person effected for the purpose of bringing him before the competent legal authority on reasonable suspicion of having committed an offence or when it is reasonably considered necessary to prevent his committing an offence or fleeing after having done so

The detention of a minor by lawful order for the purpose of educational supervision or his lawful detention for the purpose of bringing him before the competent legal authority

The lawful detention of persons for the prevention of the spreading of infectious diseases, of persons of unsound mind, alcoholics or drug addicts or vagrants

The lawful arrest or detention of a person to prevent his effecting an unauthorised entry into the country or of a person against whom action is being taken with a view to deportation or extradition.

2. Everyone who is arrested shall be informed promptly, in a language which he understands, of the reasons for his arrest and of any charge against him.

3. Everyone arrested or detained in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1(c) of this Article shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorised by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release pending trial. Release may be conditioned by guarantees to appear for trial.

4. Everyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to take proceedings by which the lawfulness of his detention shall be decided speedily by a court and his release ordered if the detention is not lawful.

5. Everyone who has been the victim of arrest or detention in contravention of the provisions of this Article shall have an enforceable right to compensation.

Restrictions to the Article:

There are certain circumstances in which public authorities can detain you as long as they act within the law. This applies, for example, if:

• You have been found guilty of a crime and sent to prison
• You have not done something a court has ordered you to do
• There is reasonable suspicion that you have committed a crime, someone is trying to stop you committing a crime or they are trying to stop you running away from a crime
• You have a mental health condition which makes it necessary to detain you
• You are capable of spreading infectious disease
• You are attempting to enter the country illegally
• You are going to be deported or extradited (sent to a country where you have been accused of a crime)

How the Article protects you:

You have the right to a fair and public trial or hearing if:

• You are charged with a criminal offence and have to go to court
• A public authority is making a decision that has an impact upon your civil rights or obligations.

In this context, your civil rights and obligations are those recognized in areas of UK law such as property law, planning law, family law, contract law, and employment law.

Definition:

1. In the determination of his civil rights and obligations or of any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law. Judgment shall be pronounced publicly, but the press and public may be excluded from all or part of the trial in the interest of morals, public order, or national security in a democratic society, where the interests of juveniles or the protection of the private life of the parties so require, or to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court in special circumstances where publicity would prejudice the interests of justice.

2. Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law.

3. Everyone charged with a criminal offence has the following minimum rights:

• To be informed promptly, in a language he understands and in detail, of the nature and cause of the accusation against him
• To have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defence
• To defend himself in person or through legal assistance of his own choosing or, if he has not sufficient means to pay for legal assistance, to be given it free when the interests of justice so require
• To examine or have examined witnesses against him and to obtain the attendance and examination of witnesses on his behalf under the same conditions as witnesses against him
• To have the free assistance of an interpreter if he cannot understand or speak the language used in court.

Fair & Public Hearing:

You have the right to a fair and public hearing that:

• Is held within a reasonable time
• Is heard by an independent and impartial decision-maker
• Gives you all the relevant information
• Is open to the public (although the press and public can be excluded for highly sensitive cases)
• Allows you representation and an interpreter where appropriate, and
• Is followed by a public decision.

You also have the right to an explanation of how the court or decision-making authority reached its decision.

Rights you have at a criminal trial:

You have the right to:

• Be presumed innocent until you are proven guilty
• Be told as early as possible what you are accused of
• Remain silent
• Have enough time to prepare your case
• Legal aid (funding) for a lawyer if you cannot afford one and this is needed for justice to be served
• Attend your trial
• Access all the relevant information
• Put forward your side of the case at trial
• Question the main witness against you and call other witnesses
• Have an interpreter, if you need one.

Restrictions to the Article:

The right to a fair and public hearing does not always apply to cases involving:

• Immigration law
• Extradition
• Tax, and
• Voting rights.

There is also no automatic right to an appeal (an application to a higher court for the reversal of the decision of a lower court).

The right of access to the courts can be restricted, for example, if you:

• Keep bringing cases without merit
• Miss the time-limit for bringing a case

There are times when the public and press are denied access to a hearing. This can happen in the interests of protecting:

• Morals
• Public order or national security
• Children and young people
• Privacy.

The courts might also decide to exclude the public or press if they think that their presence is not in the interests of justice.

How the Article protects you:

Article 7 means you cannot be charged with a criminal offense for an action that was not a crime when you committed it.

This means that public authorities must explain clearly what counts as a criminal offense so you know when you are breaking the law.

It is also against the law for the courts to give you a heavier punishment than was available at the time you committed an offense.

Definition:

1. No one shall be held guilty of any criminal offense on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a criminal offense under national law at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the criminal offense was committed.

2. This Article shall not prejudice the trial and punishment of any person for any act or omission which, at the time when it was committed, was criminal according to the general principles of law recognized by civilized nations.

Restrictions to the Article:

The right to no punishment without law is absolute. This means that it cannot be restricted in any way.

However, the Human Rights Act does make an exception for acts that were ‘against the general law of civilized nations’ at the time they were committed. It was this type of provision that allowed war crimes and crimes against humanity to be prosecuted following the Second World War.

Article 8 protects the right to private and family life, home, and correspondence, with lawful limitations.

How the Article protects you:

Article 8 protects your right to respect for your private life, your family life, your home, and your correspondence (letters, telephone calls, and emails, for example).

Definition:

Private Life
You have the right to live your life privately without government interference. The courts have interpreted the concept of ‘private life’ very broadly. It covers things like your right to determine your sexual orientation, your lifestyle, and the way you look and dress. It also includes your right to control who sees and touches your body. For example, this means that public authorities cannot do things like leave you undressed in a busy ward, or take a blood sample without your permission.

The concept of private life also covers your right to develop your personal identity and to forge friendships and other relationships. This includes a right to participate in essential economic, social, cultural and leisure activities. In some circumstances, public authorities may need to help you enjoy your right to a private life, including your ability to participate in society.

This right means that the media and others can be prevented from interfering in your life. It also means that personal information about you (including official records, photographs, letters, diaries and medical records) should be kept securely and not shared without your permission, except in certain circumstances.

Family Life
You have the right to enjoy family relationships without interference from government. This includes the right to live with your family and, where this is not possible, the right to regular contact.

‘Family life’ can include the relationship between an unmarried couple, an adopted child and the adoptive parent, and a foster parent and fostered child.

Home
The right to respect for your home does not give you a right to housing. It is a right to enjoy your existing home peacefully. This means that public authorities should not stop you entering or living in your home without very good reason, and they should not enter without your permission. This applies whether or not you own your home.

Right to Privacy
1. Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home, and his correspondence.

2. There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

Restrictions to the Article:

There are situations when public authorities can interfere with your right to respect for private and family life, home, and correspondence. This is only allowed where the authority can show that its action is lawful, necessary and proportionate in order to:

• Protect national security
• Protect public safety
• Protect the economy
• Protect health or morals
• Prevent disorder or crime
• Protect the rights and freedoms of other people

Article 9 protects freedom of thought, conscience, and religion, allowing individuals to hold or change their beliefs.

How the Article protects you:

It includes the right to change your religion or beliefs at any time.

You also have the right to put your thoughts and beliefs into action. This could include your right to wear religious clothing, the right to talk about your beliefs or take part in religious worship. Public authorities cannot stop you practising your religion, without very good reason – see the section on restrictions below.

Importantly, this right protects a wide range of non-religious beliefs including atheism, agnosticism, veganism and pacifism. For a belief to be protected under this article, it must be serious, concern important aspects of human life or behaviour, be sincerely held, and be worthy of respect in a democratic society.

Definition:

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching practice and observance.

2. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

Article 10 protects the right to hold opinions and receive and impart information and ideas without interference.

How the Article protects you:

Article 10 protects your right to hold your own opinions and to express them freely without government interference.

This includes the right to express your views aloud (for example through public protest and demonstrations) or through:

• Published articles, books or leaflets
• Television or radio broadcasting
• Works of art
• The internet and social media

The law also protects your freedom to receive information from other people by, for example, being part of an audience or reading a magazine.

Definition:

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers. This Article shall not prevent States from requiring the licensing of broadcasting, television or cinema enterprises.

2. The exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions, restrictions or penalties as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society, in the interests of national security, territorial disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, for the protection of the reputation or rights of others, for preventing the disclosure of information received in confidence, or for maintaining the authority and impartiality of the judiciary.

Restrictions to the Article:

Although you have freedom of expression, you also have a duty to behave responsibly and to respect other people’s rights.

Public authorities may restrict this right if they can show that their action is lawful, necessary and proportionate in order to:

• Protect national security, territorial integrity (the borders of the state) or public safety
• Prevent disorder or crime
• Protect health or morals
• Protect the rights and reputations of other people
• Prevent the disclosure of information received in confidence
• Maintain the authority and impartiality of judges

An authority may be allowed to restrict your freedom of expression if, for example, you express views that encourage racial or religious hatred.

However, the relevant public authority must show that the restriction is ‘proportionate’, in other words that it is appropriate and no more than necessary to address the issue concerned.

Article 11 protects the right to peaceful assembly and association, including forming and joining trade unions.

How the Article protects you:

You have the right to form and be part of a trade union, a political party or any other association or voluntary group. Nobody has the right to force you to join a protest, trade union, political party or another association.

Definition:

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

2. No restrictions shall be placed on the exercise of these rights other than such as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. This article shall not prevent the imposition of lawful restrictions on the exercise of these rights by members of the armed forces, of the police or of the administration of the state.

Article 12 protects the right to marry and found a family, according to national laws governing these rights.

How the Article protects you:

Article 12 protects the right of men and women of marriageable age to marry and start a family.

Definition:

Men and women of marriageable age shall have the right to marry and to found a family, according to national laws governing the exercise of this right.

Does this right apply to transsexual people?

The European Court of Human Rights ruled in 2002 that this right extends to transsexual people. They are able to marry or enter civil partnerships in their acquired gender because of the Gender Recognition Act 2004, the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, and the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014.

Article 14 prohibits discrimination in the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in the ECHR.

How the Article protects you:

The Human Rights Act makes it illegal to discriminate on a wide range of grounds including 'sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status'.

The case law relating to this right has shown that the term ‘other status’ includes sexual orientation, illegitimacy, marital status, trade union membership, transsexual status and imprisonment. It can also be used to challenge discrimination on the basis of age or disability.

Definition:

Discrimination occurs when you are treated less favourably than another person in a similar situation and this treatment cannot be objectively and reasonably justified. Discrimination can also occur if you are disadvantaged by being treated the same as another person when your circumstances are different (for example if you are disabled or pregnant).

It is important to understand that the Human Rights Act does not protect you from discrimination in all areas of your life – there are other laws that offer more general protection, such as the Equality Act 2010.

What the Act does do is protect you from discrimination in the enjoyment of those human rights set out in the European Convention of Human Rights. Article 14 is based on the core principle that all of us, no matter who we are, enjoy the same human rights and should have equal access to them.

Indirect Discrimination:

The courts have also ruled that the human rights protection from discrimination includes indirect discrimination. This occurs when a rule or policy, supposedly applying to everyone equally, actually works to the disadvantage of one or more groups. For example, a requirement that all employees be over six feet tall may be indirect discrimination. Women and some disabled people will be disadvantaged and to be justified this would need to be a strict requirement for the job.

Article 1 of the First Protocol protects the right to property and the peaceful enjoyment of possessions.

How the Article protects you:

Property can include things like land, houses, objects you own, shares, licences, leases, patents, money, pensions, and certain types of welfare benefits. A public authority cannot take away your property or place restrictions on its use without very good reason.

This right applies to companies as well as individuals.

Definition:

Every natural or legal person is entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of his possessions. No one shall be deprived of his possessions except in the public interest and subject to the conditions provided for by law and by the general principles of international law.

The preceding provisions shall not, however, in any way impair the right of the State to enforce such laws as it deems necessary to control the use of property in accordance with the general interest or to secure payment of taxes or other contributions or penalties.

Article 2 of the First Protocol protects the right to education.

How the Article protects you:

Parents also have a right to ensure that their religious and philosophical beliefs are respected during their children’s education.

Definition:

No person shall be denied a right to an education. In the exercise of any functions which it assumes in relation to education and to teaching, the State shall respect the right of parents to ensure such education and teaching is in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions.

Article 3 of the First Protocol protects the right to free elections by secret ballot, under conditions ensuring free expression.

Definition:

Protocol 1, Article 3 of the Human Rights Act requires the government to support your right to free expression by holding free elections at reasonable intervals. These elections must enable you to vote in secret.

The High Contracting Parties undertake to hold free elections at reasonable intervals by secret ballot, under conditions which will ensure the free expression of the opinion of the people in the choice of the legislature.

Article 1 of the Thirteenth Protocol abolishes the death penalty in all circumstances.

Definition:

The death penalty shall be abolished. No one shall be condemned to such penalty or executed.

Abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances:

This includes crimes committed during a war or when the threat of war is imminent. The UK ratified this Protocol in 2002.

Sentencing a person to death is a violation of the right to life and the right to freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment.