Okuzeka
Criminal Law & Justice vocabulary · Police Investigation & Arrest

Custody

Meaning in criminal law & justice, with examples

/ˈkʌstədi/nounCore term

In criminal law & justice, custody means: The state of being held by the police or kept in prison, for example after an arrest or while waiting for trial.

In Turkish: gözaltı, tutukluluk, nezaret

How it is used

'Police custody' is the period at the police station after an arrest; 'remanded in custody' means a court has ordered the person to be held in prison until trial. Common patterns: 'take someone into custody', 'be held in custody', 'release from custody'.

Example sentences

  1. The suspect is still in police custody.

  2. She was taken into custody at the airport.

  3. He will remain in custody until his trial in June.

Common collocations

  • police custody
  • in custody
  • take into custody
  • remanded in custody
  • custody officer
  • arrestTo take a person into police control using legal powers, usually because they are suspected of a crime; the noun 'arrest' names this act.
  • detainTo keep someone officially in a place, such as a police station or prison, and not let them leave.
  • remandTo order that a defendant waiting for trial or sentence is kept in prison, or released under conditions, until the next court date.
  • pretrial detentionKeeping a person accused of a crime in prison before and during their trial, when a court decides that releasing them would be too risky.
  • bailPermission for a suspect or defendant to stay out of custody until the next stage of the case, often with conditions or a sum of money paid as a guarantee.

More terms: Police Investigation & Arrest

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level:

This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not legal advice.