Detention is the process whereby a state or private

citizen Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

lawfully holds a person by removing their

freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving one ...

liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

at that time. This can be due to (pending)

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in C ...

charges preferred against the individual pursuant to a prosecution or to protect a person or property. Being detained does not always result in being taken to a particular area (generally called a detention centre), either for

interrogation Interrogation (also called questioning) is interviewing as commonly employed by law enforcement officers, military personnel, intelligence agencies, organized crime syndicates, and terrorist organizations with the goal of eliciting useful inf ...

or as

punishment Punishment, commonly, is the imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon a group or individual, meted out by an authority—in contexts ranging from child discipline to criminal law—as a response and deterrent to a particular ac ...

for a

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in C ...

(see

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

). An individual may be detained due a psychiatric disorder, potentially to treat this disorder involuntarily. They may also be detained for to prevent the spread of

infectious diseases An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable di ...

such as

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

. The term can also be used in reference to the holding of

property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...

for the same reasons. The process of detainment may or may not have been preceded or followed with an

arrest An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be questi ...

. Detainee is a term used by certain governments and their

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

to refer to individuals held in custody, such as those it does not classify and treat as either

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

suspect In law enforcement jargon, a suspect is a known person accused or suspected of committing a crime. Police and reporters in the United States often use the word suspect as a jargon when referring to the perpetrator of the offense (perp in dated ...

s in

cases. It is used to refer to "any person captured or otherwise detained by an armed force." More generally, it means "someone held in custody." The prisoners in

Guantánamo Bay Guantánamo Bay ( es, Bahía de Guantánamo) is a bay in Guantánamo Province at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the largest harbor on the south side of the island and it is surrounded by steep hills which create an enclave that is cut o ...

are referred to as "detainees". Article 9 of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt ...

provides that " one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

." In wars between nations, treatment of detainees is governed by the provisions of the

Fourth Geneva Convention The Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, more commonly referred to as the Fourth Geneva Convention and abbreviated as GCIV, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was adopted in Augu ...

Definition

Any form of

imprisonment Imprisonment is the restraint of a person's liberty, for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is " false imprisonment". Imprisonment does not necessar ...

where a person's freedom of liberty is removed can be classed as detention, although the term is often associated with persons who are being held without warrant or charge before any have been raised. Being detained for the purposes of a drugs search is tantamount to a temporary

, as it is not yet known whether charges can be brought against an individual, pending the outcome of the search. The term 'detained' often refers to the ''immediacy'' when someone has their liberty deprived, often before an arrest or pre-arrest procedure has yet been followed. For example, a shoplifter being pursued and restrained, but not yet informed they are under arrest or read their rights would be classed as 'detained'.

Detention of a suspect

The detention of suspects is the process of keeping a person who has been

ed in a police-cell, remand

or other detention centre before

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribun ...

or sentencing. The length of detention of suspected terrorists, with the justification of taking an action that would aid counter-terrorism, varies according to country or situation, as well as the laws which regulate it. The Terrorism Act 2006 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

lengthened the 14-day limit for detention without an

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ...

or an indictment from the

Terrorism Act 2000 The Terrorism Act 2000 (c.11) is the first of a number of general Terrorism Acts passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It superseded and repealed the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989 and the Northern Ireland (Em ...

to 28 days. A controversial

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

proposal for an extension to 90 days was rejected by the House of Commons. English criminal law requires the detainer/arrestor to have reasonable grounds to suspect ( reasonable suspicion) when detaining (or arresting) someone.

Indefinite detention

Indefinite detention Indefinite detention is the incarceration of an arrested person by a national government or law enforcement agency for an indefinite amount of time without a trial; the practice violates many national and international laws, including human ri ...

of an individual occurs frequently in wartime under the

laws of war The law of war is the component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war ('' jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of warring parties (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territ ...

. This has been applied notably by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

after the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

. Before the

Combatant Status Review Tribunal The Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRT) were a set of tribunals for confirming whether detainees held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp had been correctly designated as "enemy combatants". The CSRTs were estab ...

s, created for reviewing the status of the Guantanamo detainees, the United States has argued that it is engaged in a legally recognizable armed conflict to which the laws of war apply, and that it therefore may hold captured

al Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

and

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

operatives throughout the duration of that conflict, without granting them a criminal trial. The U.S. military regulates treatment of detainees in the manual Military Police: Enemy Prisoners of War, Retained Personnel, Civilian Internees and Other Detainees, last revised in 1997. The term "

unlawful combatant An unlawful combatant, illegal combatant or unprivileged combatant/belligerent is a person who directly engages in armed conflict in violation of the laws of war and therefore is claimed not to be protected by the Geneva Conventions. The Internat ...

" came into public awareness during and after the

War in Afghanistan (2001–present) War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: * Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC) * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709) *Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see ...

, as the U.S. detained members of the

and

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

captured in that war, and determined them to be

s. This had generated considerable debate around the globe. The U.S. government refers to these captured

enemy combatants Enemy combatant is a person who, either lawfully or unlawfully, engages in hostilities for the other side in an armed conflict. Usually enemy combatants are members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. In the case ...

as "detainees" because they did not qualify as

under the definition found in the

Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, Original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. The singular term ''Geneva Conv ...

. Under the Obama administration the term ''enemy combatants'' was also removed from the lexicon and further defined under the 2010 Defense Omnibus Bill: Section 948b. Military commissions generally: (a) Purpose-This chapter establishes procedures governing the use of military commissions to try ''alien unprivileged enemy belligerents'' for violations of the law of war and other offenses triable by military commission.

Detention by country

China

There are three types of detention in the People’s Republic of China: administrative detention (security detention), judicial detention (civil detention), and criminal detention (pre-trial detention).

Administrative detention (security detention)

Refers to the most severe sanctions for general violations of the " Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China", which is a type of administrative punishment. The maximum period of public security detention is 20 days, and release upon expiration. Administrative detention shall be signed and approved by the administrative responsible person (ie, director) of the public security agency at the county level and above, and shall be executed in the administrative detention facility under the public security agency. Those who are dissatisfied with the detention may initiate administrative reconsideration and administrative litigation. According to the decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the Chinese national security agency and

People's Armed Police ) , abbreviation = PAP ("People's Armed Police") CAPF ("Chinese Armed Police Force"), formerly abbreviated''Wujing'' ( zh , s = 武警 , p = Wǔjǐng , l = Armed Police , labels = no ), or WJ as on vehicle license plates , patch ...

has also been granted the power to enforce administrative detention penalties. "Breakfast is a steamed bun, pickles and polenta. The meal will start at 6:30; at noon there will be two steamed buns. The dishes include potato beef, potato chicken, and scrambled eggs with seasonal vegetables. Instead of three dishes, choose one of three and start at 10:30." Li Yanhong was told by the man in the water splashing incident that the "straight man went up to the tree" the inside of the Chaoyang Detention Center.

Judicial detention

One refers to activities that hinder litigation in the course of civil, administrative litigation or court enforcement, such as perjurying, attacking the court, obstructing the testimony of witnesses, concealing and transferring sealed or seized property, obstructing court staff from performing their official duties, evading execution, etc. The detention decision directly made by the people’s court is a judicial compulsory measure, based on the Civil Procedure Law or the Administrative Procedure Law. The maximum period is 20 days, and the court will deliver the detainee to the administrative detention facility of the public security department for execute. Those who are dissatisfied can apply to the court for reconsideration. During the period of detention, the court shall decide to explain in advance or release at the expiration of the term. There is also another type of judicial detention: Article 134 of the General Principles of the Civil Law stipulates: People's courts, in hearing civil cases, may be reprimanded, ordered to repent, and confiscated property and illegal gains for serious violations of civil laws and regulations and can be fined and detained in accordance with the law. It can be seen that the detention stipulated in the General Principles of the Civil Law is a punishment method used by the people's courts to impose short-term restrictions on the personal freedom of persons who seriously violate the civil laws and regulations in the name of the country. It is the most severe punishment in civil sanctions. Article 38 of the National Compensation Law and Article 4 of the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning Judicial Compensation in Civil and Administrative Litigations clearly stipulate the principle of the state's liability for civil execution compensation.

Criminal detention

Refers to the criminal compulsory measures taken by public security agency, national security agency, or the People’s Procuratorate’s Anti-Corruption Bureau or the Malfeasance Investigation Bureau in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law against current criminals or major suspects during criminal investigations. The criminal detention of the public security agency shall be approved by the person in charge of the administration of the public security agency at the county level (ie, the director). Article 69 of the Criminal Procedure Law stipulates that if the public security organ considers a detained person to be arrested, it shall, within 3 days after detention, submit it to the investigation and supervision department of the People's Procuratorate for review and approval. Under special circumstances, the time for requesting review and approval can be extended by 1 to 4 days. For major suspects who commit crimes on the verge of committing crimes, committing multiple crimes, or ganging up to commit crimes, the time for review and approval can be extended to 30 days. The People's Procuratorate shall make a decision to approve the arrest or not to approve the arrest within seven days after receiving the public security agency’s request to approve the arrest. If the People’s Procuratorate does not approve the arrest, the public security agency shall release it immediately after receiving the notice, and promptly notify the People’s Procuratorate of the execution. Those who need to continue the investigation and meet the conditions for release on bail pending trial or residential surveillance shall be released on bail pending trial or residential surveillance in accordance with the law. Article 15 Item 1 of the original version of the "National Compensation Law of the People’s Republic of China", which was implemented from January 1, 1995 to December 31, 2012, stipulates that: Detained by mistake", the detainee can apply for state compensation. Article 17 Item 1 of the revised "National Compensation Law of the People's Republic of China", which came into effect on January 1, 2013, provides for the issue of state compensation for criminal detention. Divided into two situations: Taking criminal detention measures illegally In the case of legally taking criminal detention measures but subsequently terminating the investigation of criminal responsibility, the victim must be detained beyond the detention period (up to 37 days) for the right to obtain compensation.

Netherlands

Article 9, part 1a of Wetboek van Strafrecht states that there are 4 kinds of primary punishment. Two of them are two kinds of detentions, which are called ''gevangenisstraf'' and ''hechtenis'', where the first is a heavier punishment than the second. The two other kinds of punishment is light community service and fines. Prisons are designed in several ways and there are 5 levels of regimes (which depends on the crime committed).

Nieuw Vosseveld Nieuw Vosseveld is a prison in Vught, Netherlands, part of the Custodial Institutions Agency (Dutch: ''Dienst Justitiële Inrichtingen'', DJI) of the Ministry of Justice and Security within the Dutch criminal justice system. ''Penitentiaire Inr ...

is a long stay prison with the heaviest regime for the most dangerous criminals. The prison is meant for criminals that have been sentenced to 5 years of imprisonment and longer.

Turkey

According to the Criminal Procedure Law, detention is restriction of one's freedom temporarily until either he stands trial in court or is set free to go. Contrary to arrest, which is ordered by juridical decision, detention is ordered by prosecution office. Public prosecutor can order detention only if the measure is a requisite for investigation and there is concrete evidence that one is suspicious of a crime.

References

External links

*
Human Rights Watch on Detainees

Penitentiaire Inrichtingen in Vught

Dienst Justitiële Inrichtingen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Detention (Imprisonment)