Complaint Handling Reviews

The Complaints

The complaint in this case arose after the applicant was arrested and charged with attempted murder. Whilst travelling on a bus, the applicant was approached by an unknown male who was intoxicated. The male attempted to engage the applicant in conversation which was not reciprocated. A fight between the applicant and male broke out on the bus and continued onto the street. Both parties received injuries requiring medical attention. We have reviewed the handling of six complaints, namely that: 

1. Officers failed to inform the applicant of his arrest, and he was only made aware when a nurse told him.
2. An officer said in their statement that they had observed video footage of the applicant stabbing a named person with a bottle neck, however this is not true, and the officer was lying.
3. The police report and officers’ statements were inaccurate as they stated the officers had recovered the bottle neck from the street, but it was recovered from the bin.
4. Officers failed to investigate the incident thoroughly as they failed to speak with everyone on the bus.
5. The applicant was charged because he had previously sued the police; and
6. Whilst providing a DNA sample, an officer told the applicant that he had to charge him because he was an ex-police officer, and that it would not look good if they did not. 

Police Scotland's Decision

Police Scotland did not uphold any of the applicant’s complaints.

Our Findings

We have found that Police Scotland handled complaints 1, 2, 3, 5, 6  to a reasonable standard but not so complaint 4. 

We have not made any recommendations in relation to complaint 4. 

However we have identified three learning points relating to the administration of the complaints.

Our learning points should be implemented by Police Scotland within two months of the date of this report.

Outcome

Police Scotland implemented all three learning points in this case. Two learning points related to the complaint enquiry, including the importance of maintaining audible records and an inappropriate Front Line Resolution attempt. The other learning point related to the explanation of the balance of probabilities test in the complaint response. Police Scotland disseminated the learning to the staff involved, who acknowledged/accepted the learning. 

Police Bodies: Police Scotland