A Custody Assistant is a non-warranted officer of a

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

force who assists

police officers A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

and

custody officer A custody officer is an attested constable, usually of the rank of sergeant, in the United Kingdom and in the United States who works in a custody suite. A custody officer is in charge of the protection and transportation of detainees and/ or pri ...

s in processing people who have been

arrest An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be questi ...

ed and detained in a police

custody suite {{Unreferenced, date=June 2011 A custody suite is an area within a police station in the United Kingdom designed and adapted to process and detain those who have been arrested, or who are there for purposes such as answering bail. Historically, all ...

. The custody assistant also has responsibilities relating to the care and

welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

of the detained person.

Role

The duties of a custody assistant (or known as a Detention Officer) commonly include: * Searching, or assisting in searching arrested persons, * Performing regular scheduled checks on detained persons in

cells Cell most often refers to: * Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life Cell may also refer to: Locations * Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery w ...

, * Taking

photograph A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now create ...

s, DNA samples and

fingerprint A fingerprint is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. The recovery of partial fingerprints from a crime scene is an important method of forensic science. Moisture and grease on a finger result in fingerprints on surfac ...

s of the detained person, * Assisting

s with general admin and the running of the suite, * Providing meals to those detained.

Powers

In England & Wales, the

chief police officer In the United Kingdom, a chief police officer is the most senior police officer in a police force. The chief police officers are the 53 Chief Constables, the Commissioner of the City of London Police and the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Poli ...

of a

territorial police force A territorial police force is a police service that is responsible for an area defined by sub-national boundaries, distinguished from other police services which deal with the entire country or a type of crime. In countries organized as federations, ...

may designate any person who is employed by the

police authority A police authority in the United Kingdom is a public authority that is responsible for overseeing the operations of a police force. The nature and composition of police authorities has varied over time, and there are now just four dedicated "police ...

maintaining that force, and is under the direction and control of that chief police officer, as a detention officer. They have a range of powers given by the

Police Reform Act 2002 The Police Reform Act 2002 (c.30) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Amongst the provisions of the Act are the creation of the role of Police Community Support Officers, who have some police powers whilst not being 'sworn' cons ...

, and their chief police officer decides which of these powers they may use. In Scotland, Police Custody and Security Officers have powers similar to those of detention officers and escort officers in England and Wales. Similar powers are available in Northern Ireland.

Role

Powers

References

See also