During the last 30 years, the way in which children give evidence in the criminal justice system in England and Wales has been radically transformed. These reforms have, however, neglected child suspects in the police station. Recent piecemeal reforms to the statutory regime for children in police detention have overlooked a critical stage of the criminal justice process: the police interview. This article critically analyses the policy, practice and law surrounding police questioning of child suspects. It demonstrates that the absence of child-specific guidance when interviewing child suspects is not only out of step with wider reforms, but carries real risks regarding the effective communication and participation of child suspects.

中文翻译：

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开始的事情，最后的事情：在警察局与儿童嫌疑人取得最好的证据

在过去的 30 年里，英格兰和威尔士的刑事司法系统中儿童作证的方式发生了根本性的转变。然而，这些改革忽视了警察局中的儿童嫌疑人。最近对警察拘留儿童法定制度的零碎改革忽略了刑事司法程序的一个关键阶段：警察面谈。本文批判性地分析了警方讯问儿童嫌疑人的政策、做法和法律。它表明，在与儿童嫌疑人面谈时缺乏针对儿童的指导，不仅与更广泛的改革不同步，而且在儿童嫌疑人的有效沟通和参与方面存在实际风险。