Device help, when can they return items?
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Hello, i am in need of help involving my brother who has been arrested for a sexual communication on snapchat with a real child.
The visit from police came in July 2024 where they seized all devices in the house, over 10 things were taken including laptops, tablets and phones.
Its now been 18 months and his investigating police officer says all items are still awaiting to be checked.
So my question is can they return devices once they have extracted the data on the drive or do they have to be retained? What I mean is actually return the whole device as soon as they've imaged it but if anything illegal is found during the review process then it has to be re-seized. Because the initial arrest was not image related it was a sexual communication on snapchat. My brother swears on his fathers life there are no search terms, no dark web activity , no suspiicous searching or websites visited, nothing has been flagged by his ISP, no credit card activity or signing up making paymemts to suspicious websites or other people.
My brother fully understands the investigation and will co operate best he can but is really struggling without certain items as his laptop contained apps to support his medical and disability needs. He is totally deaf and needs subtitled software to make phone calls via bluetooth. He just doesnt know how hes going to cope waiting for another year while they review the device (if they ever get round to it)..Like i said the offence is not image related just a silly communication. I can understand if it was image related they would need to keep it.
So just wondering has any one else had devices back as soon as imaging is complete? Do you think they can return things if an arrest isn't image related....
We did however ask chat gpt for an opinion and it suggested speaking to the police in charge or the solicitor but then again dont really trust chat gpt in this situation and i think asking the police directly might raise them to be suspicious that said devices might contain images.
So before we take it up with any solicitor or officer we hope to get some opinions or info on here so really appreciate any reply, thanks.
The visit from police came in July 2024 where they seized all devices in the house, over 10 things were taken including laptops, tablets and phones.
Its now been 18 months and his investigating police officer says all items are still awaiting to be checked.
So my question is can they return devices once they have extracted the data on the drive or do they have to be retained? What I mean is actually return the whole device as soon as they've imaged it but if anything illegal is found during the review process then it has to be re-seized. Because the initial arrest was not image related it was a sexual communication on snapchat. My brother swears on his fathers life there are no search terms, no dark web activity , no suspiicous searching or websites visited, nothing has been flagged by his ISP, no credit card activity or signing up making paymemts to suspicious websites or other people.
My brother fully understands the investigation and will co operate best he can but is really struggling without certain items as his laptop contained apps to support his medical and disability needs. He is totally deaf and needs subtitled software to make phone calls via bluetooth. He just doesnt know how hes going to cope waiting for another year while they review the device (if they ever get round to it)..Like i said the offence is not image related just a silly communication. I can understand if it was image related they would need to keep it.
So just wondering has any one else had devices back as soon as imaging is complete? Do you think they can return things if an arrest isn't image related....
We did however ask chat gpt for an opinion and it suggested speaking to the police in charge or the solicitor but then again dont really trust chat gpt in this situation and i think asking the police directly might raise them to be suspicious that said devices might contain images.
So before we take it up with any solicitor or officer we hope to get some opinions or info on here so really appreciate any reply, thanks.
Hi, my person was arrested for sexual communication with a young person on snapchat. He admitted straight way to the allegation and informed the police that the only device he'd used was his phone. He also told the police that they'd find no illegal activity on any of his devices. They seized his work phone which they checked and returned the same evening, his laptop that was returned about about a month later and his phone which was returned a few months after his arrest. None of them contained any evidence. My understanding is that a device that contains no evidence will be returned once checked.
Hi
We were categorically told that seized devices would not be returned until sentencing had taken place - we got them back about 2 months post sentencing.
The only thing we got back early was his work laptop as it had to go back to his employer.
I guess different areas have different systems. We are South East England x
We were categorically told that seized devices would not be returned until sentencing had taken place - we got them back about 2 months post sentencing.
The only thing we got back early was his work laptop as it had to go back to his employer.
I guess different areas have different systems. We are South East England x
I'm not an expert but I would think that the police would have some responsibility to consider a disability but I am equally as sure that they won't bother unless challenged. They should mitigate the harm as long as there is no alternative you could set up. I know buying new devices is expensive but I'm not sure the police would care about that. You probably need legal help with this as a letter drafted by a solicitor would be your best bet to get some resolution. Thinking off the top of my head, the police could expedite checking of the device, they could provide a temporary substitute or clone. Deprivation of accessible communication for months is disproportionate when alternatives exist, but saying this via a solicitor would carry more weight and be less likely to be ignored by the police which is what many of us find happens regularly.