Posted: Thursday 20 October 2011
Commissioner calls for an apology after man not told that detention was unlawful
A man who complained to the Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland about rudeness and unprofessional comments by officers from Strathclyde Police was not told that he had been wrongfully detained.
The man, who is not named in the report published today (20 October 2011), was arrested after his dog bit his partner's nephew during a visit to their home. The police detained him under S14 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, which can only be used for offences punishable by imprisonment, which was not the case for the alleged offence.
Strathclyde Police identified the error during their own investigation into the man's complaints of rudeness and unprofessional comments by its officers. As a result, the officers involved were given "corrective advice" on the scope of their powers under S14. However, the man was not told of the error.
The information was uncovered by the PCCS in police files during the Commissioner's review of the original complaints. In the report Professor McNeill, found that the police had dealt with the original two complaints reasonably, but that the basis for their decision not to inform the man of his unlawful detention was "wholly inappropriate". As a result, the Commissioner has called on Strathclyde Police to apologise for both unlawfully detaining him and for failing to advise him of this finding when it first came to light.
In another report involving Strathclyde Police, the Commissioner reminded them that they are required by law to provide him with all information relating to a complaint when requested by the PCCS. This followed a request by the Commissioner to Strathclyde Police's professional standard department to confirm that they had supplied all papers relating to a case involving the removal of a vehicle in the vicinity of a football stadium. The doubt arose when only limited information about the force's investigation into the complaint was sent to Commissioner. Despite an assurance that all information had been provided, following further enquiries by the PCCS an additional file and other items were later sent to his office.
The Commissioner noted in his report that none of the information that subsequently formed the basis of the review was provided to him as part of the original request and he found that none of the six complaints made by the driver had been handled reasonably.
Commenting on the reports Professor McNeill said:
I make it abundantly clear when I request papers from the police that I expect all information to be provided promptly and in full. I accept that administrative mistakes can and do happen, but I do not expect to have to make repeated requests for information that is easily available to the police. I will monitor closely all Scottish police forces in how well they are fulfilling their legal obligations in this regard.
The Commissioner has called time on police involvement with one man's complaints arising from a series of long-running neighbour disputes. According to Professor McNeill, who reviewed 31 individual complaints about the way Grampian Police investigated the man's allegations of vandalism, stalking and CCTV surveillance, there is "nothing to be gained" from Grampian Police dealing with any further complaints the man makes which relate directly to those dealt with in his report.
Professor McNeill again: "Grampian Police expended a substantial amount of resources in dealing with allegations against his neighbours and the subsequent complaints about the police, the vast majority of which I found were dealt with in a reasonable manner. During this time, Grampian Police put in place special arrangements for dealing with the man, including appointing a specific officer to oversee any incidents arising form the neighbour dispute.
There are a small number of complainers who, because of the frequency or manner of their contact with the police, place unreasonable demands on police time and resources. In this case I felt that it was appropriate for me to intervene to bring matters to a conclusion where, despite the best efforts of the police, a resolution has not been possible."