first, what is custodial investigation?

Custodial investigation is the stage where the police investigation is no longer a general inquiry into an unsolved crime but has begun to focus on a particular suspect taken into custody by the police who carry out a process of interrogation that lends itself to elicit incriminating statements. It is well-settled that it encompasses any question initiated by law enforcers after a person has been taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in any significant way. This concept of custodial investigation has been broadened by RA 7438 to include the practice of issuing an 'invitation' to a person who is investigated in connection with an offense he is suspected to have committed.

http://www.supremecourt.gov.ph/jurisprudence/1999/apr99/..\s...

what we need is the contrary:


"Deputy Hargett's testimony at the suppression hearing clearly established that he had factual information received from the Wal-Mart employee via the Russellville Police Department to detain Shaver and effect *** a non-custodial investigation*** based on the suspicious purchases by Shaver and his companions of the maximum amount of pseudoephedrine-containing pills allowed under Wal-Mart policy.

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=al&vo...

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Note added at 1 hr (2008-11-19 16:57:11 GMT)
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a better option would be "to conduct a preliminary investigation":

Preliminary investigation is a previous inquiry or examination made before the arrest of the defendant by the judge or officer authorized to conduct the name, with whom a complaint or information has been filed imputing the commission of an offense cognizable by the Court of First Instance, for the purpose of determining whether there is a reasonable ground to believe that an offense has been committed and the defendant is probably guilty thereof, so as to issue a warrant of arrest and to hold him for trial.

http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1942/sep1942/gr_48110_19...

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Note added at 3 hrs (2008-11-19 18:59:31 GMT)
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X trebuie cercetat în libertate = X should not be deprived of freedom during prosecution