Video: New ruling will set crooks free says Yorkshire police chief in ‘headless chickens’ row

The ruling, which was made by a district judge and backed by a judicial review in the High Court, means officers will no longer be able to bail suspects for more than four days without either charging or releasing them.

It challenges an interpretation of the law which has been used for the last 25 years and means releasing suspects on bail and calling them back for questioning weeks later - a common practice in most major inquiries - is “pretty much a dead duck”.

Home Secretary Theresa May said the decision was a “matter of great concern”.

The Government, along with both the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), are considering the ramifications for police across England and Wales, she said.

Police are seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court while the Home Office is looking into whether or not it is necessary to introduce legislation to address the issue.

“We are conscious of the concerns this judgment has brought in terms of operational policing,” Mrs May said.

Sir Norman Bettison, chief constable of West Yorkshire Police, said: “It’s on the verge of a disaster now because the question being asked by my custody sergeants is, ‘What do we do, boss?’

“I cannot countenance turning people away from the charge office and telling them all bets are off and they are free to go.”

He went on: “We are running round like headless chickens this morning wondering what this means to the nature of justice.

“My holding position with my officers is that I can’t believe this is what was envisioned.

“We are awaiting advice from the CPS.

“The early indications are that until this matter is appealed or new legislation is passed the issue of putting people on bail for further questioning when they answer their bail is pretty much a dead duck.

“We are waiting, as the rest of the world is, for the best advice from the best legal minds.

“It’s a mess.”

Despite the ruling forces are continuing to release suspects on police bail.

Sir Norman added he was telling his officers to continue working as they have always worked, ensuring no suspect spends more than a maximum of 96 hours actually in custody, until further guidance was issued.

About 4,260 suspects are currently on bail from his force alone - which represents about 5% of the police service - meaning about 85,200 people are on bail at any one time, he said.

Chief Constable Jim Barker-McCardle, the Acpo lead on the issue, said the ruling has a “profound impact on how the police have investigated crime under a legal framework interpreted and used during the last 25 years”.

“Unless overturned, the indications are its effect is that police can no longer put anyone out on bail for more than 96 hours without either being in a position to charge or release,” he said.

“Chief officers have significant concerns as to the effect it will have on policing.”

The district judge at Salford Magistrates’ Court ruled that the detention clock could continue to run while the suspect was on bail from the police station.

Paul Hookway, a murder suspect, was first arrested at 12.40pm on November 7 last year.

A superintendent granted permission for him to be detained for up to 36 hours for questioning, but he was released on bail after about 28 hours.

Five months later, on April 5, police applied to the courts to extend the period of detention from 36 hours to the maximum allowed of 96 hours.

But the district judge refused the application, saying that the 96 hours had expired months ago.

Greater Manchester Police applied to the High Court for a judicial review of the case, but Mr Justice McCombe upheld the district judge’s decision on May 19 and refused leave to appeal.

The force is now seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper warned the ruling will “disrupt vital ongoing investigations and hugely hamper the police in their job”.

She called on Mrs May to explain urgently what her legal advice says and how to remedy the situation to “make sure thousands of ongoing investigations aren’t lost”.

James Welch, legal director for the civil rights group Liberty, added: “Being out on bail pending investigation is not the equivalent of being detained.

“Limits on the time that suspects can be held in police custody are necessary but there are good reasons why the police should be allowed to bail suspects for more than 96 hours.”

But Mark Leech, editor of the national prisoners’ newspaper ConVerse, said reforms were needed to limit the time a suspect could be placed on police bail.