Does custody visiting contribute to police accountability?

The purpose of the Independent Custody Visiting Scheme is supposed to be to safeguard detainees from harm, and its first proponents saw it as a means to deter police misconduct which could lead to the death of detainees (Kendall, 2018: 34). Custody visitors make unannounced visits to police stations and report on what they find. Official literature claims that the Scheme contributes to police accountability (Home Office, 2001). However, as Casey points out in her study of the Met, there is very little police accountability (Casey, 2023), and her view is echoed in my finding that there is little police accountability provided by custody visiting.  Read full article...