Inside Police Custody 2 promptly provided with information about the criminal act they are suspected or accused of having committed, in such detail as is necessary to safeguard the fairness of the proceedings and the effective exercise of the rights of the defence (Art. 6(1)); and suspected and accused persons who are arrested or detained are informed of the reasons for their arrest or detention, including the criminal act they are suspected or accused of having committed (Art. 6(2)). Recital 28 states that the information specified in Article 6(1) must be given, at the latest, before the first official interview by the police or other competent authority, ‘and without prejudicing the course of ongoing investigations’. This suggests that such information may be withheld if providing it would cause such prejudice. Detailed information, including the nature and legal classification of the offence, as well as the nature of participation of the accused, must be provided to the accused, at the latest, on submission of the merits of the accusation to a court (Art. 6(3)). The suspected or accused person must be promptly informed of any change in the information provided, for example, if new material information comes to light. Thus, the Directive differentiates between the level of information that must be provided at different stages, but leaves significant room for interpretation, both generally and in specific cases, as to the precise amount of information that must be provided at a particular stage of the criminal process. Right of access to case materials Article 7 provides for two rights. First, where a person is arrested or detained at any stage, member states must ensure that documents related to the specific case in the possession of the competent authorities which are essential to challenging effectively, in accordance with national law, the lawfulness of the arrest or detention are made available to the arrested person or their lawyer (Art. 7(1)). Second, member states must ensure that access is granted at least to all material evidence in the possession of the competent authorities, whether for or against the suspect or accused, to them or to their lawyer, in order to safeguard the fairness of the proceedings and to prepare the defence (Art. 7(2)). In relation to the latter provision, access must be granted in due time to allow the effective exercise of defence rights, and at the latest upon submission of the merits of the accusation to the judgement of the court (Art 7(3)). Derogation in relation to the disclosure obligations in Article 7(2) and 7(3) is permitted if, provided it does not prejudice the right to fair trial, access may lead to certain consequences such as serious threat to the life or fundamental rights of another person (Art. 7(4)). Access under Article 7 must be provided free of charge. Common provisions In order to verify that information has been provided in accordance with the Directive, member states must ensure that this is noted using a recording procedure specified in the law. Suspected and accused persons must have the right to challenge failure or refusal to provide information in accordance with the Directive. For the purposes of this project, which is primarily focused on the procedural rights of suspects in police custody, the right of access to documents under Article 7(1) is clearly relevant. It may appear that, at the early stage of the criminal process, the right of access under Article 7(2) is not relevant. However, it is important to note that many jurisdictions have out-of-court disposal schemes and/or expedited proceedings in certain types of case, some of which avoid court hearings altogether. If Article 7(2) is narrowly interpreted, then suspected or accused persons may be required to make decisions about the disposal of their case without an adequate right of access to material evidence. 14