Report - Police Scotland – PIRC/00795/23
The Complaints
The complaints in this case arose after the applicant reported an incident of vandalism to the police. The applicant contacted the police in December 2020 to report an incident of vandalism at his daughter’s house. He reported that a window had been broken and who he believed was responsible. Police officers attended, but no arrest was made.
We have reviewed the handling of one complaint, namely that:
Police Scotland did not sufficiently investigate an incident of vandalism.
Police Scotland's Decision
Police Scotland did not provide a determination for the applicant’s complaint.
Our Findings
We have found that Police Scotland did not handle the applicant’s complaint to a reasonable standard.
Consequently, we have made a recommendation and identified a learning point to address the shortcomings in Police Scotland’s handling of the complaint. In summary, we have recommended that Police Scotland now record the matter as a relevant complaint. We have also identified a learning point for the complaint handler to familiarise himself with the PIRC Statutory Guidance, specifically the sections regarding relevant complaints and non-investigation provisions.
Our recommendation and learning point should be implemented by Police Scotland within two months of the date of this report.
Outcome
Police Scotland implemented one recommendation in this case. In doing so, Police Scotland recorded the complaint as a relevant complaint about the police. In addition to implementing our recommendation, Police Scotland also implemented one learning point. Complaint enquiry officers were reminded of the relevant sections of our Statutory Guidance relating to what is a relevant complaint and the non-investigation provisions. We have received confirmation from Police Scotland that this learning has been shared accordingly.
Police Bodies: Police Scotland