What happened to cooperation Brietta when the PJ requested information/assistance from the Leicestershire Police ?
Has it crossed your mind that the people SY want to 'interview' have already been questioned and eliminated ?
It is also quite possible the PJ know full well there is no evidence of abduction, and the case is going nowhere, and, they have been told to 'cooperate' by their political masters, and please don't say there hasn't been political influence in this case, because there damn well has.
Agreed, Stephen it is a very political case and always has been.
Portugal is a member of the European Union and as such is signatory to certain conventions.
It will be interesting to see how that pans out.
In the interim, I think you have a very low opinion of the standard of the PJ investigation when you insinuate they are simulating it to placate their ‘political masters’.
Please bear in mind the present PJ team provided the fresh evidence which enabled Madeleine’s case to be re-opened in Portugal.
1959 and 2000 conventions both relevant, and each to be cited in a letter of request:
the 23 Member States of the European Union which have ratified both conventions:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom;
Iceland and Norway.
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/l_to_o/obtaining_evidence_and_information_from_abroad/Refusal of assistance
Nearly all legal instruments (treaties, conventions and memoranda of understanding) specify grounds upon which a request may be refused, either in totality or certain aspects only. The decision will be for the requested authority to make.
If assistance is refused there is usually little, if any, scope for negotiation.
Common grounds for refusing a request include the following:
The offence under investigation is deemed a political offence;
The legal principle ne bis in idem (double jeopardy) may be offended;
The offence concerned is covered by an amnesty in the requested state;
The age of the offender is under the age of legal responsibility in the requested state;
The requested measure cannot be legally authorised in the requested state;
If undertaking the request could compromise an investigation or proceedings in the requested state.
In practice, refusal is rare and is most likely to occur simply because the request cannot be executed at all, perhaps due to insufficient information to establish the whereabouts of the evidence or a witness.
However, prosecutors must remember that practical issues including costs and the availability of resources may affect how, if at all, a request can be undertaken. If the request is complex, vague, too wide in its scope, or imposes unreasonable deadlines, these factors could all have a negative affect on the successful completion of the request.
For further information see the relevant legal instruments pursuant to which the request is made. See Annex A for the most relevant treaties and conventions.
http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/l_to_o/obtaining_evidence_and_information_from_abroad/
