Pre-charge advice
The stage where a case can still be stopped. If you have been arrested, interviewed, or told you are released under investigation, no charging decision has been made yet.
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What this covers
- Arrest and the first police interview
- Released under investigation, sometimes for a year or more
- Voluntary attendance, where you are not arrested but are still interviewed under caution
- Written representations to the police and the Crown Prosecution Service before they decide
- Representations after charge, asking the prosecution to review the decision
What actually happens
- The interview
- What you say, and what you decline to say, is read out at any later trial. So is a refusal to answer. This is the one part of the process that cannot be undone later.
- The wait
- Released under investigation has no time limit. People wait months without being told anything, and most of that silence is the file sitting with a reviewing lawyer.
- The decision
- A charging decision turns on whether there is a realistic prospect of conviction and whether a prosecution is in the public interest. Both can be argued with, in writing, before it is made.
Cases
The cases below are anonymised. The pre-charge stage is where people are most identifiable, and someone who was never charged should not be traceable from a page about the lawyer who acted for them.
Client TC
Arrested and interviewed on suspicion of rape. Detailed pre-charge representations were submitted to the reviewing lawyer, and within weeks the police and the CPS confirmed that no further action would be taken.
Client KA
Arrested and interviewed on suspicion of rape and of assaulting his wife. The representations included targeted early disclosure requests, which led to further investigation. No further action was taken.
A councillor
Instructed to defend serious criminal allegations. The details are withheld to protect her privacy. After disclosure requests and written representations, the prosecution was discontinued.
Client SS
Charged with causing serious injury by dangerous driving, an allegation carrying a starting point of two years. Post-charge representations asked the CPS to review the charge; it was reduced to causing serious injury by careless driving. He pleaded guilty and was fined.
Client SN
Charged with harassment of an ex-partner, and later with further serious offences. Post-charge representations addressed the evidence, his ill health and deficiencies in disclosure. The prosecution offered no evidence on all counts.
What Imran does about it
For many clients, the period between arrest and a charging decision is the most stressful stage of any criminal investigation. Months, and sometimes years, can pass whilst individuals live under the shadow of potential prosecution, with profound consequences for their family life, career, reputation and mental wellbeing.
Imran Shafi KC has an exceptional record of securing favourable outcomes at the pre-charge stage and bringing investigations to an end before proceedings are ever commenced. In the majority of cases in which he has been instructed to provide pre-charge advice and representations, the outcome has been a decision not to prosecute.
Every case begins with a detailed review of the allegation and a careful analysis of the available evidence. Imran takes comprehensive instructions from his client, identifying not only the strengths of the defence case but also the weaknesses in the prosecution’s evidence.
He then prepares detailed written representations for the reviewing lawyer at the Crown Prosecution Service, setting out why a charge should not be authorised and why the appropriate outcome is No Further Action.
These representations may include:
- A forensic challenge to the strength and reliability of the evidence.
- Identification of inconsistencies, credibility issues and other weaknesses affecting prosecution witnesses.
- Requests for further disclosure where material has not been adequately considered or revealed.
- Identification of additional lines of enquiry that the police should pursue to test or corroborate the client’s account.
- Analysis of evidential and public interest considerations under the CPS charging standards.
- Detailed submissions regarding relevant physical or mental health conditions.
- Evidence of the impact that the investigation is having on the client’s health, wellbeing and personal circumstances.
Imran’s approach is both rigorous and strategic. His objective is not simply to respond to the allegations, but to persuade the decision-maker that prosecution is neither justified nor in the interests of justice.
Successful pre-charge representations can spare clients from the intolerable stress and anxiety that accompanies a criminal prosecution. They can prevent years of uncertainty, avoid protracted and costly legal proceedings, and protect reputations before irreparable damage is done.
For those facing the prospect of criminal charges, effective intervention at the earliest opportunity can be decisive. Imran’s outstanding track record demonstrates the value of expert advocacy before a case ever reaches the courtroom.
Regulated by the Bar Standards Board. Authorised to accept Public Access instructions. Not authorised to conduct litigation.