Assaults on officers

AuthorityIsle of Man Constabulary
Date received2020-08-11
OutcomeSome information sent but not all held
Outcome date2020-08-24
Case ID1417824

Summary

The Isle of Man Constabulary provided statistics on arrests, charges, and prosecutions for assaulting police officers between August 2019 and August 2020 but could not supply a breakdown of officer injuries as that data is not held in a retrievable format.

Key Facts

  • 39 people were arrested for assault on police, resulting in 46 total arrests.
  • 28 people were charged for assault on police, resulting in 35 total charges.
  • 34 people were prosecuted for assault on a peace officer, resulting in 41 prosecution cases.
  • Some individuals were arrested, charged, or prosecuted on multiple occasions.
  • Injury data for officers is not feasible to retrieve from arrest or prosecution records.

Data Disclosed

  • 01/08/2019
  • 18/08/2020
  • 39 people
  • 46 arrests
  • 28 people
  • 35 arrests
  • 34 people
  • 41 prosecution cases
  • 1417824
  • 2020-08-11
  • 2020-08-24

Exemptions Cited

  • Information not held or cannot be found after taking reasonable steps

Original Request

I seek the publication of the number of people who have been (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) prosecuted for assaulting a police officer since August 1 2019. I also seek a breakdown of injuries to officers as a result of any assaults since 2019.

Data Tables (1)

Data Tables (reformatted)

Category Number of People Total Incidents Notes on Repeat Offenders
Arrested for assault on police 39 46 Five people arrested more than once (three twice, two three times)
Charged for assault on police 28 35 Five people arrested more than once (three twice, two three times)
Prosecuted for assault on peace officer 34 41 Five people prosecuted more than once (three twice, two three times)

Full Response Text

Isle of Man Constabulary Freedom of Information Police Headquarters Dukes Avenue Douglas Isle of Man IM2 4RG

Our ref: 1417824 24 August 2020

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 11 August 2020 and which states:

"I seek the publication of the number of people who have been (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) prosecuted for assaulting a police officer since August 1 2019. I also seek a breakdown of injuries to officers as a result of any assaults since 2019."

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the public authority does not hold or cannot, after taking reasonable steps to do so, find some of the information that you have requested. the level of assaults on officers would be difficult to extract from our data. I have detailed below the information that is held. 1. Between 01/08/2019 and 18/08/2020: (a) 39 people have been arrested for assault on police, in 46 arrests (five people have been arrested on more than one occasion, three twice and two on three occasions). (b) 28 people have been charged for assault on police, in 35 arrests (five people have been arrested on more than one occasion, three twice and two on three occasions). (c) 34 people, who were arrested for assault on police, have been (or will be for live cases) prosecuted for assault on peace officer, in 41 prosecution cases (five people have been prosecuted on more than one occasion, three twice and two on three occasions). 2. The injuries sustained by officers are not feasible to retrieve from arrest records, nor from prosecution case details. 3. The Constabulary is able to clarify that the offence of “Assault on a Peace Officer” requires that : a. The Officer was acting the execution of their duties and b. Was assaulted during the execution of those duties.

There is no requirement to hold the level of injury but it is believed that most assaults do not reach the threshold for higher assaults such as wounding or grievous bodily harm.

Please quote the reference number 1417824 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

If you are unhappy with this response to your freedom of information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been concluded.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on; 1. Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015; or 2. Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.
In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision. More detailed information on your right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im. Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me. Further information about freedom of information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi.

I will now close your request as of this date.

Yours sincerely