The Police Have Called Me In for a Statement: Do I Have to Go?

You get a call or a note: the police are summoning you to give a statement. The first reaction is usually unease, and the first question is always the same: do I have to go? The answer depends on something that is often not made clear when you are summoned: whether you are being called as a person under investigation or as a witness. Here we explain it step by step. If what you want is to find out whether a report (denuncia) has been filed against you, we have another guide on how to know if you have been reported; this one goes a step further: you have already been summoned.

You have been summoned: person under investigation or witness?

First of all, ask in what capacity you are being summoned, because it completely changes your rights and your obligations:

• Person under investigation: the person to whom the act is attributed. You have the right to remain silent and to legal assistance.
• Witness: a third party who allegedly witnessed something. You are under a duty to appear and tell the truth before the judge (arts. 410 and 420 LECrim), subject to the exemptions the law provides; before the police that duty works differently, as explained below.

If your status is not made clear, your lawyer can demand that it be specified before any statement is given. This is not a minor detail: it defines your entire position.

Am I obliged to attend?

The answer has two parts: attending is not the same as making a statement, and although a police summons does not work the same way as a court one, it is not advisable to ignore it.

If you are summoned as a person under investigation to give a statement at a police station, no rule imposes a fine for failing to attend: the fine under art. 420 LECrim and the conversion of a summons to appear into an arrest warrant under art. 487 LECrim are set out for court summonses. But that does not mean missing it comes free: art. 492 LECrim requires the police to make an arrest when there are sufficient grounds to attribute the act to a person and the circumstances give reason to presume that you will not appear when called — and disregarding a summons feeds exactly that presumption. In practice: you attend accompanied by a lawyer, or you justify your absence and ask for a new date through them. Once there, deciding whether to make a statement or remain silent is a right you retain intact.

Watch out for a different scenario: in fast-track trials, the police hand out summonses to appear before the duty court (art. 796 LECrim). Even if it is handed to you by an officer, it is a court summons with formal warnings attached, and failing to attend triggers the consequences of a court non-appearance. Always read the document carefully: if it states a day and time at a court, it is not a police appearance. Faced with a simple informal call, in short, never commit to making a statement on the spot: contact a lawyer first, who will handle the appearance and find out what is being investigated.

Your rights: to remain silent and to a lawyer (art. 520 LECrim)

Art. 520 LECrim grants a person under investigation a set of essential rights:

• Remain silent and not testify against yourself or confess guilt.
• Appoint a lawyer and be assisted by them without delay.
• Have a private consultation with the lawyer before making a statement.
• Be informed of the facts attributed to you and of the reasons for the investigation.

The silence of a person under investigation cannot, by itself, be used as evidence of guilt.

Why you should never make a statement without a lawyer

Even though the law allows you to waive some rights, making a statement without your own lawyer is the most common and costly mistake. Without technical defence you do not know what evidence there is against you, you cannot assess the scope of each question, and any remark made "just to clarify things" can be recorded in the police report and shape the entire procedure. The lawyer meets with you beforehand, studies the situation, and decides strategically whether to make a statement, answer only their questions, or remain silent. On how to handle a court summons as a person under investigation we also have a specific guide.

If you are summoned as a witness: your duties are before the judge

The law sets out a witness's duties in relation to a court summons: art. 410 LECrim requires appearing and testifying before the judge, and art. 420 LECrim punishes unjustified non-appearance with a fine of EUR 200 to EUR 5,000 and forced attendance, with possible criminal prosecution if it persists. Faced with a police summons, by contrast, the law does not impose that duty on the witness with those same consequences — although, if you do not attend, you will usually end up being summoned by the court, where everything then becomes mandatory.

And what about the truth? The offence of false testimony (art. 458 CP) punishes a witness who departs from the truth «in judicial proceedings»: a statement at a police station is not that, so lying to the police as a witness does not amount to false testimony. That does not make it harmless: falsely attributing acts to a person can amount to false accusation (art. 456 CP); fabricating a non-existent offence is simulation of an offence (art. 457 CP); and lying to help the perpetrator evade the investigation can amount to aiding an offender (art. 451 CP). What is more, what the witness states in the police report has the value of a report (denuncia) (art. 297 LECrim) and must be ratified before the judge — and it is only there that the criminal duty to tell the truth applies.

What happens if you do not go

Ignoring the summons does not make the matter go away. The police can forward the case file to the Public Prosecutor's Office or the court, which can in turn summon you judicially. Failing to answer a court summons as a person under investigation, without justified cause, can lead to an order for your location and forced attendance, and even your arrest (art. 487 LECrim). As a witness, unjustified non-appearance at a court summons also carries consequences (art. 420 LECrim). The conclusion is simple: it is not about attending blindly or about hiding, but about handling the summons with a lawyer by your side.