Coronavirus arrests and sentences since 2020

Summary

A request for statistics on coronavirus arrests, juvenile involvement, custodial sentences, and fixed penalty notices in the Isle of Man from March 2020 to July 2021 was partially fulfilled. The Department of Home Affairs provided data for the period up to March 2021 and total custodial sentences, but withheld information for April to July 2021 and juvenile sentence counts as it is held by other authorities.

Key Facts

• There were 215 arrests for COVID-19 offences between March 2020 and March 2021.
• 35 of the arrests between March 2020 and March 2021 involved juveniles under the age of 18.
• A total of 71 persons received a custodial sentence for breach of Coronavirus Regulations from March 2020 to July 2021.
• 37 Fixed Penalty Notices were issued by the Police between March 2020 and March 2021.
• The Department of Home Affairs does not hold data for the period of 1st April to 27th July 2021 or on juveniles receiving custodial sentences.

Data Disclosed

• 215
• 35
• 71
• 37
• 1st March 2020
• 27th July 2021
• 1st April 2021
• March 2021
• 1926861

Exemptions Cited

• Information not held by the public authority
• Information held by separate Data Controllers (Isle of Man Constabulary and/or General Registry)

Original Request

Please can you confirm the following: 1. What is the total number of persons arrested for breach of any Coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? 2. What is the total number of juveniles out of such arrests? 3. What is the total number of persons who have received a custodial sentence for breach of any coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? 4. What is the total number of juveniles receiving a custodial sentence out of the total referred to in question 3? 5. What is the total number of fixed penalty notices issued for breach of any Coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? Thank you.

Data Tables (1)

Data Tables (reformatted)

Full Response Text

Chief Executive's Office DHA Headquarters Tromode, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM2 5AP

Telephone: (01624) 694313 Fax: (01624) 621298 Web address: www.gov.im/dha Email: GeneralEnquiries.DHA@dha.gov.im

Our ref: 1926861 8 August 2021

Dear ###

We write further to your request which was received on 27 July 2021 and which states:

"Please can you confirm the following: 1. What is the total number of persons arrested for breach of any Coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? 2. What is the total number of juveniles out of such arrests? 3. What is the total number of persons who have received a custodial sentence for breach of any coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? 4. What is the total number of juveniles receiving a custodial sentence out of the total referred to in question 3? 5. What is the total number of fixed penalty notices issued for breach of any Coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021? "

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. Please find our responses below: 1. Between March 2020 and March 2021 there were 215 arrests for COVID-19 Offences. The Department does not hold information for the period 1st April to 27th July. 2. Of the 215 arrests for COVID-19 Offences between March 2020 and March 2021 35 were juveniles (under the age of 18). The Department does not hold information for the period 1st April to 27th July. 3. The total number of persons who received a custodial sentence for breach of Coronavirus Regulations in the IOM from 1st March 2020 to 27th July 2021 is 71. 4. The Department does not hold this information. 5. Between March 2020 and March 2021 there were a total of 37 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) issued by the Police. The Department does not hold information for the period 1st April to 27th July.

In relation to questions 1, 2, 4 and 5, the information that you require might be obtained from the Isle of Man Constabulary and/or the General Registry, both separate Data Controllers. Further COVID-19 data was provided by the Chief Constable as part of his annual report which was laid before Tynwald in July. This data is publicly available and can be found at: https://iompolice.im/media/1404/cv19-data-for-annual-report.pdf

Please quote the reference number 1926861 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