''Arguido'' (male, ) or ''arguida'' (female, ), normally translated "named suspect" or "formal suspect", is a status in Portuguese type legal systems, including those of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

and

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. It is given to a person whom the authorities suspect may have committed an offence. This designation does not exist in certain other jurisdictions.e.g. "...there is no direct equivalent in UK law..." In a criminal investigation a person has to be declared an ''arguido'' prior to being arrested. Portuguese law makes a distinction between ''arguido ''and suspect.

The rights of an ''arguido''

If a person becomes an ''arguido'', they automatically gain certain rights that a witness or suspect would not have. An ''arguido'' has the right to be accompanied by a lawyer when questioned. The investigating police may ask the ''arguido'' more direct accusatory questions (the answers to which would not be admissible in court if possibly self-incriminatory and asked of a non-''arguido'') but the ''arguido'' must be presented with whatever evidence is held against them, and unlike a witness has the

right to remain silent The right to silence is a legal principle which guarantees any individual the right to refuse to answer questions from law enforcement officers or court officials. It is a legal right recognized, explicitly or by convention, in many of the worl ...

, not to answer any question that may incriminate the person, and does not face legal action for lying.

Witness In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...

es in criminal investigations are legally bound to co-operate with the police and do not have the right to silence and face legal actions if they lie. Because of the legal advantages, some individuals apply for ''arguido'' status to be given to themselves, e.g. when it would appear that the police suspect them but are trying to use their witness status to extract as much information as possible. A person who has ''arguido'' status has not been formally accused of a crime, arrested or charged, and not all ''arguidos'' are subsequently charged. The police may ask a court to restrict an ''arguidos movement and oblige them to not leave the country. ''Arguidos'' cannot change their place of residence, without permission from a court. There is no time limit on the status.

Comparison with common-law administrations

The status is very similar to that of being "questioned under caution" under the

Police and Criminal Evidence Act The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) (1984 c. 60) is an Act of Parliament which instituted a legislative framework for the powers of police officers in England and Wales to combat crime, and provided codes of practice for the exercise ...

in the United Kingdom or being questioned after being read one's "

Miranda Rights In the United States, the ''Miranda'' warning is a type of notification customarily given by police to criminal suspects in police custody (or in a custodial interrogation) advising them of their right to silence and, in effect, protection ...

" in the USA, specifically the right to legal representation, the liberty to refuse to answer questions, and the admissibility in court of statements taken whilst in those statuses.

Etymology

''Arguido'' derives from the Latin ''arguire'' or ''arguere''. The English words ''argue'' and ''argument'' have the same etymology.

References

{{Criminal procedure Portuguese criminal law Criminal law legal terminology Portuguese words and phrases Criminals by status Civil law legal terminology no:Siktelse