Police Interrogation as a Suspect – Rights Before, During, and After the Interrogation

Brief Answer: When you are questioned as reasonably suspected, you should be informed about the nature of the suspicion and your fundamental rights. Among other things, you have the right to hire a defense attorney, under certain conditions obtain a public defender, receive an interpreter if needed, not to speak about the suspicion, and not to contribute to the investigation of your own guilt. You also have the right to have your defense attorney present during questioning.

The right not to speak is a right – not a general recommendation on the best interrogation strategy. In a specific case, early information can both clear up a misunderstanding and be of great importance later. Whether, when, and how you should respond depends on the suspicion, the available information, and your personal circumstances. This assessment should, if possible, be made with a defense attorney.

This guide is general information for adults. For a broader view of the process, see Suspected of a Crime – Your Rights from Police Interrogation to Detention. Also read about the levels of suspicion and the difference between being apprehended, arrested, and detained.

Before the Police Interrogation: Clarify Your Role and the Suspicion

According to Chapter 23, Section 6 of the Code of Judicial Procedure, the police may conduct an interrogation with someone who is assumed to be able to provide information of significance to the investigation. Therefore, it is important to know in what role you are being questioned. A person may initially be contacted as an informant or witness and later become a suspect. If the questions begin to concern your own possible involvement, you should ask if your status has changed.

Request Answers to These Questions

• Am I being questioned as a suspect, complainant, witness, or informant?
• Am I reasonably suspected and have I been formally notified of the suspicion?
• What specific act is the interrogation about?
• What time, place, and criminal classification are specified?
• Has the suspicion changed since previous contact?
• Who is leading the preliminary investigation – police or prosecutor?
• Will the interrogation be recorded with audio and video?

When the preliminary investigation has progressed to the point where someone is reasonably suspected, the person must be informed of the suspicion when questioned, according to Chapter 23, Section 18 of the Code of Judicial Procedure. The description should make it possible to understand which act the defense concerns. A criminal classification alone may be too vague if time, place, or conduct is not specified.

A Summons is Not the Same as Being Apprehended

A summons to an interrogation does not in itself mean that you are deprived of liberty. However, the summons should not be ignored. The person summoned may, under certain conditions, be subject to a fine or brought in for questioning. Therefore, check the date, place, case number, contact person, and whether the summons includes a directive.

According to Chapter 23, Section 9 of the Code of Judicial Procedure, a person who is not arrested or detained is normally not obliged to remain for questioning longer than six hours. If it is of particular importance that someone who may be suspected is available for further questioning, an additional six hours may be applicable. When the interrogation and the legal detention period are over, the person may leave. This is a different procedure than apprehension, arrest, and detention.

Rights When You Are Notified of Reasonable Suspicion

In connection with the notification of suspicion, you should, according to Section 12 of the Preliminary Investigation Ordinance, receive information in a language you understand.

Right	What it means in practice	Important limitation or nuance
Defense Counsel	You may hire a defense counsel and, in certain cases, have a public defender appointed by the court.	A public defender is not automatically appointed in every case.
Waive Defense Counsel	You should be informed of the consequences if you consider waiving defense counsel and can later retract the waiver.	A waiver must be voluntary and unequivocal. Request a defense counsel again if you change your mind.
Defense Counsel at the Hearing	During a hearing, you have the right to have your defense counsel present.	Specific exceptions may apply for a privately appointed person who does not meet the legal qualification requirements.
Right to Remain Silent	You are not required to provide a statement or answer questions about the suspicion.	The right does not automatically determine what is strategically best in your case.
Right Against Self-Incrimination	You are not otherwise required to contribute to the investigation of your own guilt.	This does not prevent the authority from using legal coercive measures when the conditions are met.
Interpreter and Translation	You should receive an interpreter and translation of documents essential to safeguarding your rights when needed.	The assessment concerns the need and which documents are essential, not an automatic translation of all material.
Information on Changes	You should be informed of changes in the suspicion.	Request that the altered act and classification be specified.
Access to Information	After being notified of the suspicion, you and your defense counsel have a continuous right to access information.	During an ongoing investigation, access may be limited if disclosure would harm the investigation.

When can you get a public defender?

According to Chapter 21, Section 3a of the Code of Judicial Procedure, a public defender shall be appointed upon request, among others, for those who are detained or arrested and for those suspected of a crime with a minimum penalty of six months' imprisonment. A defender shall also be appointed when needed due to the investigation, uncertainty about the penalty, or special personal or other reasons.

The court makes the decision. During the preliminary investigation, the investigating officer must report the matter to the court when the legal conditions are met. You may propose a specific qualified lawyer, who should normally be appointed unless there are special reasons against it. The state pays the defender during the process, but the convicted person may be required to repay all or part of the cost.

During the Hearing: Listen to the Question and Indicate Uncertainty

A hearing is part of evidence collection. Information can be compared with technical evidence, messages, and other people's accounts. An early statement can also later be played back or cited in court. This makes precision more important than speed.

• Request Rephrasing. Indicate if the question is unclear, contains multiple assumptions, or uses words you do not understand.
• Make Time References Carefully. Distinguish between exact time, estimated time, and something you only assume.
• Differentiate Personal Observations from Secondhand Information. Specify what you personally saw or heard and what someone else reported.
• State When You Do Not Remember. An honest "I do not remember" is different from confirming the interrogator's suggestion.
• Correct Misunderstandings Immediately. Explain which wording was incorrect and what you meant.
• Request a Break. If you have a defense counsel, you can request to confer before the hearing continues.
• Check for Role Changes. Ask if the suspicion changes or expands during the hearing.

The interrogator must not use deliberately incorrect information, promises of special benefits, threats, coercion, exhaustion, or other improper measures to elicit a confession or statement in a certain direction. The person being heard must also not be denied regular meals or necessary rest. This follows from Chapter 23, Section 12 of the Code of Judicial Procedure.

The Swedish Police Authority’s official interview model

PEACE is an acronym for five phases covering preparation, conduct and follow-up:

The names of the phases and the cognitive-interview requirement below follow PM 2023:2 p. 8. The explanations of what the work may involve in each phase are our overview based on the model and research—not verbatim quotations from that page. The psychological effects in the next section are possible effects, not a claim that every feature is selected with the same purpose in every interview.

1. P – Planning and preparation (Plan and prepare). The interviewer analyses the purpose, available information, alternative hypotheses, legal conditions, the person’s needs and documentation.
2. E – Engage and explain. Roles, rights, purpose and practical arrangements are explained, and communication is established so the person can understand and provide information.
3. A – Account and clarification (Account, clarification, challenge). The person gives an account, follow-up questions clarify it, and information may be tested against other information or evidence.
4. C – Closure. The interview is summarised, misunderstandings and objections are addressed, and the person is told what happens next.
5. E – Evaluation (Evaluate). The information, the conduct of the interview and the need for further measures are evaluated afterwards.

The handbook also states that cognitive interview methodology must be used when seeking information about an event the person is believed to have experienced and the person is willing to provide an account. The method is intended to support recall and reporting without unnecessary direction.

Special review: techniques and psychological influence

Within the PEACE framework, interviewers use different ways to establish contact, support memory, ask questions, use pauses and test accounts against evidence. These methods seek to increase the amount, precision and evidential value of information. This section explains how the methods may affect the interviewee—not that every psychological effect is a separately approved technique.

PEACE: a calm tone and rapport are part of the method

PEACE covers planning and preparation, engagement and explanation, account and challenge, closure and evaluation. The interviewer seeks to create a calm and trusting environment because a person who feels trust often provides more information. A friendly or conversational tone can therefore be professional rapport-building while also serving an investigative purpose. It does not mean that the conversation is informal, confidential or “off the record”.

Free account, open questions and deliberate pauses

The interviewer should normally seek a free account with as few leading questions and interruptions as possible. Open prompts such as “tell me everything you remember” and silence after a short answer can be deliberate ways of allowing more information to emerge. You do not have to fill a pause. If you exercise the right to silence, you can repeat your clear response instead of beginning to speculate in order to ease social tension.

SUE: evidence may be withheld and disclosed strategically

Strategic Use of Evidence (SUE) was developed by Swedish researchers in cooperation with experienced interviewers. The interviewer may first seek your own account and exhaust possible alternative explanations without disclosing all known evidence. Evidence can then be presented in a chosen order and your account compared with the material. The aim is to produce more reliable indicators of truth or deception and make the evidence more diagnostic—not to require the police to disclose everything they know at the outset.

Two officers, different roles and seating in the room

Two officers sometimes work together in Swedish interviews. One may lead the conversation while the other listens, takes notes, observes or asks supplementary questions. Furniture, distance, eye contact and which officer uses the softer tone can affect the experience of authority and safety.

However, we found no public support for a Swedish national training standard requiring a “friendly” officer to sit on the same side of the table as the suspect. If this occurs in a particular interview, it should be described as a possible role or room strategy, not as an established national method. Both officers remain participants in the same investigative interview.

Legal limits also apply to strategic interviewing

Rapport-building, sequencing, pauses and strategic use of evidence must not become knowingly false information, threats, promises of benefits, coercion, exhaustion or other improper methods. The objectivity principle governing the preliminary investigation also applies: circumstances supporting and undermining the suspicion must both be sought, preserved and considered.

Important limitations: Silence may in exceptional cases have limited relevance where strong evidence clearly calls for an explanation, but it can never establish guilt on its own and does not shift the prosecutor’s burden of proof. Body language is not a reliable indicator of deception. Contradictions may result from ordinary memory errors. Public sources do not establish a fixed Swedish method for how two officers should divide their roles or position themselves in the room.

Further reading: the Swedish Police Authority on police education, the National Police Board review of interview training, Nyroos and Söderlundh on Swedish police interviews, the University of Gothenburg on body language and false confessions and Ola Kronkvist’s textbook for police interviewers.

Should You Answer, Provide a Brief Statement, or Wait?

There is no responsible standard answer that fits all suspicions. The following circumstances may influence the assessment:

Question to Assess	Why It Matters
Is the suspicion sufficiently concrete?	It is difficult to take a stance on issues if you do not know which act they pertain to.
Have you had the opportunity to consult with a defense attorney?	A defense attorney can assess legal and evidentiary risks in the individual case.
Is the memory certain or influenced?	Stress, lack of sleep, intoxication, medication, and a long time since the event can increase the risk of errors.
Is there a simple verifiable explanation?	Certain misunderstandings can be clarified, but incomplete information can also be misinterpreted.
Have you had any insight into the material?	Insight may be limited early on, affecting the ability to understand the questions.

You can use the right question by question. You can also request to consult with a defense attorney before taking a stance. Avoid absolute formulations that you cannot stand by. Choosing to answer certain questions does not mean you have to guess the rest; refraining from a question does not prevent you from later, after consultation, providing information.

Audio, Video, and Interview Notes

New main rule since July 1, 2026: According to Chapter 23, Section 21 b of the Code of Judicial Procedure, interviews during preliminary investigations must be documented through audio and video recording, unless technical reasons or other special circumstances argue against it. If the interview is not documented with both audio and video, it may instead be documented through audio recording.

A recording and a written statement are not the same thing. The preliminary investigation protocol may contain a summary or transcript, while the recording shows wording, questions, pauses, and context. The recording must be preserved until the preliminary investigation has been closed or concluded or, if charges are brought, until the case is finally decided.

When a statement has been transcribed, the person heard must, according to Chapter 23, Section 21 of the Code of Judicial Procedure, have the transcription read aloud or otherwise have the opportunity to review it and be asked about objections. In particularly extensive or complicated interviews, and now also when interviews have been recorded, the review can take place as soon as possible after the interview. An objection that does not lead to a change must be noted.

Control Questions about Documentation

• Was the entire interview recorded with audio and video? If not, what form of documentation was used?
• When and how can you review the written transcription?
• Has your objection to a formulation been noted?
• Does the text distinguish between your account, the question, and the interviewer's summary?
• Is it clear which persons were present?

The right to insight does not always mean you immediately receive your own copy of everything during an ongoing investigation. Questions about insight are assessed by the investigation leader and are affected by investigation confidentiality. After final notification, the insight is more comprehensive.

After the Interview: Document Without Filling in Memory Gaps

1. Make your own time notation. Note when the interview started and ended, pauses, who participated, and what rights you were informed about.
2. Note specific errors. Write down which information was incorrect, what you actually said, and why the difference is relevant.
3. Contact the defense attorney. Review new questions, any changes in suspicion, and the need for supplementation.
4. Request correction or supplementation factually. Do not send a guessed new account. Delimit each correction.
5. Follow the case status. Ask who is handling the case and how you will be informed about closure, charges, or final notification.

After the notification of suspicion, you and the defense attorney have an ongoing right to access what has occurred to the extent it can be done without detriment to the investigation. When the investigation is considered complete, you should, according to Chapter 23, Section 18 a of the Code of Judicial Procedure, be given access to the material and reasonable time to request supplements before charges are decided. A request for an interview or other investigation should be conducted if the measure is deemed to be of significance; a refusal must be justified.

Checklist for Police Interview as a Suspect

• I know in what role I am being heard.
• I have had the act, classification, and degree of suspicion explained.
• I have understood the information about defense attorney, silence, interpreter, and insight.
• My request for a public defender has been forwarded to the court if the conditions exist.
• I know if and how the interview is being recorded.
• I distinguish secure memories from estimates and things I do not remember.
• I have marked unclear questions and specific errors.
• I know how and when the written transcription can be reviewed.
• I have noted times, pauses, and those present afterward.
• I know who handles continued insight and any supplements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to attend a police interview?

It depends on how you have been summoned. A summons can be accompanied by a penalty, and those who fail to appear without valid reason can, under certain conditions, be brought in for questioning. Contact the handler if the time does not work instead of ignoring the summons. The obligation to appear is not the same as the obligation to provide information about one's own guilt.

Do I always have the right to a public defender?

No. You have the right to be assisted by a defender, but a public defender is appointed by the court when the criteria in Chapter 21, Section 3a of the Code of Judicial Procedure are met. Detention, the minimum penalty for the crime, the complexity of the investigation, possible sanctions, and personal circumstances can be decisive.

Can the police conduct an interrogation before a defender has arrived?

The right to an effective defense must be respected, but the answer depends on the situation. For a detained person, an initial interrogation should be conducted as soon as possible, while a request for a defender should be handled without delay. In urgent situations, a limited initial interrogation may occur. Clearly request a defender and ask for the request and response to be documented.

Can I change or supplement what I said?

You can provide a later correction or supplement. However, the previous interrogation does not disappear, and differences may be subject to questioning. Therefore, a correction should be specific: indicate what was wrong, what is correct, and why the information is being changed.

Can the police lie during an interrogation?

The Code of Judicial Procedure prohibits knowingly false information and other improper methods when the purpose is to elicit a confession or a statement in a certain direction. This does not mean that the police must disclose the entire investigation or all evidence during an early interrogation.

Can a recorded police interrogation be used in court?

Yes, a previous statement can be presented as evidence under the conditions of the law. Since July 1, 2026, audio and video recordings are the main rule during preliminary investigation interrogations, making it particularly important to ask for clarifications and avoid guessing.

What applies if I am under 18 years old?

Special rules apply according to the Act with Special Provisions on Young Offenders. Among other things, there are specific requirements for defenders, notifications to guardians and the social welfare board, expedited processing, and how the interrogation is planned and conducted. This adult guide is therefore not sufficient for youth cases.

Sources and Further Reading

• Code of Judicial Procedure (1942:740), especially Chapter 21, Sections 3–9 and Chapter 23, Sections 6–12, 18–21c
• Preliminary Investigation Ordinance (1947:948), especially Sections 12 and 12a
• Swedish Prosecution Authority: Rights for Suspects
• Swedish Prosecution Authority: Suspected of Crime
• Swedish Police Authority: From Report to Verdict
• Swedish Courts: How the Trial Proceeds

Last fact-checked against current legislative text and official authority sources: July 29, 2026. The information is general and does not replace individual advice from a defender familiar with the investigation.