Failing to account for objects, substances, marks or presence: drawing adverse inferences under CJPOA 1994


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Corporate Crime expert
Practice notes

Failing to account for objects, substances, marks or presence: drawing adverse inferences under CJPOA 1994


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Corporate Crime expert

Practice notes
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The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (CJPOA 1994) permits the court to draw an adverse inference from the failure of a defendant, following their arrest, to account for an object, substance or mark, or to account for their presence at a place at or about the time of an offence.

Adverse inferences

CJPOA 1994 provides that a court may draw such 'inferences as appear proper' from a person's failure to account for the relevant matter. It gives no further guidance on what this phrase means but the principles are the same as for inferences from silence under CJPOA 1994, s 34.

See Practice Note: Inferences from silence: failure to mention facts.

No adverse inferences can be drawn unless the jury is satisfied that a defendant has failed or refused to provide an explanation or where the explanation given is implausible. Difficulties may arise where a defendant has given a partial account. For example, in R v Compton the court held that the defendant did not account for the presence

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