When the police question or arrest you, they have to follow rules.
When police charge you, they give you a piece of paper that tells you what laws they say you broke.
That paper also tells you when and where to go to court.
It is good to talk with a lawyer before you go to court.
The paper that police give you is called the charge sheet.
There might be one charge on the paper or there might be a lot of charges on the paper.
It depends on how many laws police say you broke.
The police will also write down the story about what they say you did when you broke the law. The police have to follow rules when they ask you questions
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 Look |
 Read |
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Who Can Help? (Service Providers)
 | Read |
| My rights with the police
This web page has information for young people about rights with police. |
| Cop This (Booklet)
This booklet helps you know your rights when dealing with the police in the NT. |
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Watch |
One Million Dollars
This video explains your rights when dealing with police.
What’s the Law? – Police (Film)
A short film in basic English about your rights when dealingwith the police
Cop This (Film)
A legal rights education film for young people
| Listen |
You can listen to this story about crime (offence) and police investigation in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more audio stories like this.
This audio explains the word crime in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word bail in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word charge in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
This audio explains the word police in Yolngu Matha. Click here for more recordings like this.
Police caution in Kriol for a person in custody.
Glossary: What these words mean
| court | A law-place where a judge decides about legal problems. (Plain English Legal Dictionary 2015) |
| lawyer | A lawyer is a person who has special training to help people with legal problems and talk for them in court. (modified from the Plain English Legal Dictionary 2015) |
| charge | When police think a person broke a law, they might charge that person. This means the police write down what law/s they say that person broke on a court-paper and give it to the person. The charge is the law that police say the person broke.
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