Report and Recommendations - Scottish Government

6.4 VULNERABLE ADULT SUSPECTSIntroduction6.4.1 When a suspect is arrested and detained, the police must be able to determine,so far as practicable, his/her fitness to be interviewed. A suspect may not befit to be interviewed because of some temporary state, including intoxicationthrough drink or drugs, injury or short-term illness requiring medical treatment.Each may render the suspect incapable of answering questions, or of doing sointelligibly, in the short term. These problems will be cured by the passage oftime. There may equally be barriers to a suspect understanding questions putto him/her because of language or hearing difficulties. These can be overcomeby the use of an interpreter or other suitable measures.6.4.2 This chapter is, however, concerned with a further category of suspect; namelyone whose fitness for interview is affected by vulnerabilities of a permanent,or at least semi-permanent, nature. A vulnerable person may not be fit to beinterviewed at all or without special measures, such as the presence of an“appropriate adult” 1 . As will be seen, there require to be protections for suchsuspects, analogous to those for child suspects.1 this term is used exclusively in connection with vulnerable adults and is distinct from a “responsibleperson” applicable in the case of children (cf the position in England and Wales)225