Three in four domestic abuse offences reported to the police are closed without a perpetrator being charged, a watchdog has said, amid fears the figures have worsened during the pandemic.<\/p>\n
Her Majesty\u2019s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) said forces were increasingly using two types of \u201coutcome\u201d to close domestic abuse cases: the first being the absence of support from the victim and the second being a lack of evidence despite having the victim\u2019s backing to prosecute.<\/p>\n
Zo\u00eb Billingham, the inspector of constabulary, said she was shocked that the figures, which covered the year to March 2020, were so high and appeared to be worsening.<\/p>\n
The data came to light as part of the watchdog\u2019s review into the policing response to domestic abuse during the coronavirus pandemic, published on Wednesday, in which forces were largely praised for their proactive approach.<\/p>\n
Billingham said: \u201cIt is the police\u2019s job to build the case for the victim. In many cases it isn\u2019t clear that forces are taking all the opportunities to undertake an effective initial investigation or that they desisted from pushing back the decision on to the victim.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo when was the last time any of us heard of the police asking a burglary victim if they wanted the police to take action? It doesn\u2019t happen but it happens repeatedly in crimes of domestic abuse. I am shocked that the crime closure rates are now so high and worsening and still forces still don\u2019t have a good understanding of the reason for this.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my professional judgement it cannot be right that after domestic abuse crimes have been reported to the police \u2013 largely by victims but admittedly on occasion by friends or families or neighbours \u2013 but for three-quarters of these crimes to close because of so-called evidential difficulties. We are in a very difficult place in policing \u2013 there\u2019s no other way of describing it.\u201d<\/p>\n Billingham said there were wide variations between police forces in closure rates for domestic abuse incidents. In 10 forces, 80% of domestic abuse allegations were closed because of lack of evidence or lack of support from the victim to prosecute.<\/p>\n She said while the data covered the year to March 2020, there was no data to suggest the situation had improved during the pandemic.<\/p>\n HMICFRS has called on all forces to assess the closure rates for domestic abuse crimes and draw up a plan of action for improving them.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, the inspectorate said it was concerned about the impact of court backlogs on domestic abuse cases, which while not for the police to solve, may increase the likelihood of victims disengaging from the criminal justice process.<\/p>\n
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