Report - Tayside Police
- Reference:
- PCCS/00491/PF-TP
- Police Body:
- Tayside Police
- Date:
- 24 April 2010
- Download:
- Download Report - Tayside Police
The applicant was arrested for by officers of Tayside Police for an alleged wildlife crime following allegations by two former employees. The applicant raised complaints about the decision to arrest him and the conduct of a civilian employee of Tayside Police.
The Commissioner found that two out of the three complaints made were not handled by Tayside Police in a reasonable manner. In respect of complaint 1, the Commissioner recommended that Tayside Police reach a firm view on whether the applicant's arrest was appropriate in the circumstances. In the event that Tayside Police decides that the arrest was inappropriate, the Commissioner recommended that it apologises to the applicant for this.
In respect of complaint 2, the Commissioner recommended that Tayside Police apologise to the applicant unreservedly in respect of the comments made by the civilian employee.
The applicant also complained about the time taken by Tayside Police to complete its investigation into his complaints. The Commissioner acknowledged that the complaints raised by the applicant led to a far reaching and complex investigation which resulted in the investigation taking longer than expected. The Commissioner identified the learning point that in such circumstances an applicant is provided regular updates during an investigation and that the reasons for any delay are explained fully in the final response letter.