Police Service for Northern Ireland v Smith [2019] NIQB 39 (11 April 2019)

Police Service for Northern Ireland v Smith [2019] NIQB 39 (11 April 2019)

The police did not have sufficient facts or information to satisfy an objective observer that the plaintiff may have committed the offence; reliance solely on a text message with the plaintiff's forename was inadequate, and further reasonable inquiries should have been made before arresting the plaintiff. The test for reasonable suspicion was not met, rendering the arrest unlawful.

Citation
[2019] NIQB 39
Parties
Defendant/appellant: The Chief Constable of the Police Service for Northern Ireland; Plaintiff/respondent: Conor Smith
Jurisdiction
Northern Ireland
Judgment Date
11 April 2019
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Appeal Against County Court Decision
Outcome
appeal dismissed
Legal Topics
False Imprisonment, Wrongful Arrest, Negligence, Breach of Statutory Duty, Damages, Lawfulness of Arrest, Reasonable Suspicion, Necessity of Arrest
Tort Law Criminal Procedure Human Rights False Imprisonment Wrongful Arrest Negligence Breach of Statutory Duty Damages +3 more

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Parties

The Chief Constable of the Police Service for Northern Ireland

Defendant/appellant

Conor Smith

Plaintiff/respondent

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Appeal Against County Court Decision

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the arrest of the plaintiff was lawful under Section 26(2) of the Police and Criminal Evidence (NI) Order 1989
  2. 2 Whether the police had reasonable suspicion to arrest the plaintiff
  3. 3 Whether the necessity test for arrest was satisfied

Ratio Decidendi

The police did not have sufficient facts or information to satisfy an objective observer that the plaintiff may have committed the offence; reliance solely on a text message with the plaintiff's forename was inadequate, and further reasonable inquiries should have been made before arresting the plaintiff. The test for reasonable suspicion was not met, rendering the arrest unlawful.

Court Disposition

appeal dismissed

Orders

  • Judgment of £3,550 in favour of Mr Smith is confirmed