Report – Police Scotland – PIRC/00571/23
The Complaints
The complaint in this case arose after the applicant was arrested, interviewed and charged with a domestic abuse offence. She was subsequently acquitted at trial. We have reviewed the handling of one complaint, namely that:
- during an interview in May 2020, an officer told the applicant she could not answer ‘no comment’ to a question because there were multiple witnesses to the incident.
Police Scotland's Decision
Police Scotland did not uphold the applicant’s complaint.
Our Findings
We have found that Police Scotland did not handle the applicant’s complaint to a reasonable standard.
We have identified two learning points for Police Scotland regarding the importance of contacting complainers at the outset of complaint enquiries, and assessing the sufficient level of information required to conclude a complaint.
Our learning points should be implemented by Police Scotland within two months of the date of this report.
Outcome
Police Scotland implemented two learning points we identified in this case. In doing so the learning was appropriately disseminated to the officers involved in the complaint handling process and accepted them.
Police Bodies: Police Scotland