Complaint Handling Reviews

The Complaint

The complaint in this case arose from a domestic dispute between the applicant and his former partner. We have reviewed the handling of a single complaint, namely that:

• the applicant provided evidence contrary to what was represented by his ex-partner and officers took no consideration of this information. 

Police Scotland’s Decision

Police Scotland did not uphold this complaint.

Our Findings

We have found that Police Scotland did not handle the applicant’s complaint to a reasonable standard.

We have made a recommendation to address the shortcomings in Police Scotland’s handling of the complaint.

(a) carry out necessary and proportionate further enquiries into the complaint;

(b) reassess the complaint in light of the information obtained as a result of these enquiries, and in light of the observations made in our report; and

(c) provide the applicant with a fresh response which makes clear whether the complaint has been upheld or not upheld, on the balance of probabilities.

Our recommendation should be implemented within two months of the date of this report.

Outcome

Police Scotland implemented the recommendation made in this case. In doing so, they carried out necessary and proportionate further enquiries and a further response was provided to the applicant. While the complaint remained not upheld, the applicant was provided with a detailed and clear explanation for this determination.

Police Bodies : Police Scotland