ABSTRACT
Both the police and the courts make bail decisions. Police decisions are governed by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and court decisions by the Bail Act 1976. However, in practice, the law is similar for both police and court decisions. The police are able either to bail defendants or detain them until the next available court hearing. In cases where the police refuse bail, young people should be transferred to local authority accommodation unless it is impractical to do so or no secure accommodation is available. In reality, young people are rarely moved out of police custody and, while not breaching the letter of the law, this practice clearly contravenes its spirit and results in vulnerable young people being detained in police custody.
