Lord Advocate welcomed the publication of a review on how the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service handle criminal allegations against police officers.
The report was compiled in Scotland by HM Inspectorate of Prosecutions. It stated that the public should feel reassured by the rigorous scrutiny that is applied by prosecutors in relation to police-related criminal allegations.
It was found that the 2013 creation of the Criminal Allegations Against the Police Division has led to more consistent prosecutorial decisions.
The report stated that although overall decision-making within COPFS is positive, there are areas for improvement.
The Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, QC said that after the publication was published, she felt that the public should feel reassured by the rigorous scrutiny applied by prosecutors in relation to police-related criminal allegations. Its publication is a welcome development and I thank the Inspector for her detailed and thorough review.
“The Crown is committed towards the fair and effective investigation and timely decision making on criminal allegations against police officers.
“Prosecutors depend on witnesses and victims’ trust to fulfill their role. We will review the processes we use to communicate our decisions to them in order to maintain that trust.
“COPFS will carefully review all recommendations in the report, and make changes where necessary to implement them.”
