This policy document provides guidance in relation to Crime Recording and Investigation.

Transcription

1 Summary Force Policy Document Crime Management This policy document provides guidance in relation to Crime Recording and Investigation. If you are unsure about the validity of the content of this policy please refer to the Policy Owner Policy owner Policy holder Author Head of County Policing Command Head of CID Crime Development Team Manager Approved by FPD no. 008 Legal Services Policy owner Review Note: Please send the final FPD with both signatures on it to the Force Policy Officer for the audit trail. Please note that if the FPD still has the word DRAFT in the footer when asked for production, it is not taken as the definitive FPD policy. Upd: Review Page 1 of 16

2 INDEX Volume Crime CIS Process:... 3 Action by CCR OIC CDT... 4 Scene Attendance and Primary Investigation... 5 Crime Scene Responsibilities... 5 Offences Committed in other Police Areas... 7 Restricted Crimes... 8 Applying Solvability Criteria... 9 Mandatory Crime Critical Incident Media Interest Additional Special Factors Crime Allocation Crime Allocation Guide Legal Basis (Please list below the relevant legislation which is the legal basis for this policy document). You must up this list with changes in legislation that are relevant to this policy document. Legislation specific to the subject of this policy document Act (title and year) Human Rights Act 1998 Equalities Act 2010 Crime and Disorder Act 1998 Health & Safety Legislation Data Protection Act 1998 Freedom of Information Ac 2000 Other related documentation: Hate Incidents FPD Repeat Victims FPD Upd: Review Page 2 of 16

3 Volume Crime CIS Process: Public Record on CAD (Crime related incident) Officer ups CAD (Closed-Non Crime) NO Officer attends Crime Identified? Victim contact/ reassurance Yes Officer create crime on CIS CDT Vali Crime Solvability? NO Referral to Victim SNT SNT letter Yes Allocate to Officer/ SNT/Supervisor No Crime OIC complete enquiries/problem solving/victim contact and reassurance Supervisor checks and QA Crime Development Team Classification FILE Positive Outcome Not detected Upd: Review Page 3 of 16

4 Action by CCR OIC CDT Report of crime Contact and Control Room (CCR) Officer dispatched to scene / victim by CCR Primary Investigation and crime record by attending officer CDT Vali Allocate for secondary Investigation Referral to Victim SNT and SNT letter sent Upd: Review Page 4 of 16

5 Scene Attendance and Primary Investigation The role of the first officer attending the scene is to provide the initial personal police contact and continue the investigative process. The victim will always expect the person dealing with their crime to be enthusiastic, smart and professional and they are entitled to nothing less. The actions taken by the first officer attending a crime scene are crucial to any subsequent successful forensic examination and increase the potential to recover evidence. Officers must be mindful they are investigators and their conduct when carrying out a thorough and professional crime scene investigation will provide the best chance of identifying the offender. The recording of all actions and considerations, whether positive or negative, is imperative to reflect what has been done and where opportunities may still exist for further investigation. The initial stage of any enquiry is an information gathering exercise that is intended to establish known facts. Once all available information is known, an informed decision can be made on potential lines of further investigation to establish unknown facts that may lead to a successful outcome. The following actions and standards are particularly relevant to any colleague attending a crime scene or recording any incident as a crime. A quality investigation is based upon the principle of getting it right first time. Crime Scene Responsibilities In addition to the immediate offence location, crime scenes that provide potential physical evidence can also be any combination of (and not exclusively): The victim The suspect Witnesses Routes to and from the location Weapons (including live and spent ammunition) Suspect s home or other premises controlled by them Vehicles; police vehicles and ambulances (note that in the majority of cases bedding/dressings etc. used on victims can be recovered by Police officers and the ambulance released; if in doubt consult a supervisor/csi) Dump sites (including victim, clothing, weapons or stolen property) Upd: Review Page 5 of 16

6 Officers attending crime scenes should be aware of their responsibilities in relation to identifying: Scene(s) location Scene preservation Health and safety issues Victim/witness identification Potential for forensic evidence (avoiding cross contamination) MO (include as much detail as possible as every criminal has their own unique offending signature ) CCTV Suspect details/description/mode of transport/direction Additional resources required Any other available evidence Upd: Review Page 6 of 16

7 Offences Committed in other Police Areas Report received of crime committed in another Force area Carry out any necessary investigation Consider: Crime scene Investigation Witness Victim care Seizure of evidence Inform the relevant force Upd: Review Page 7 of 16

8 Restricted Crimes Crime reports can be classified as restricted where one of the following criteria apply. If a Police Officer or Police employee is an offender / suspect or person of interest on a recorded crime; If a Police Officer or Police employee is the victim of a crime of a sensitive nature and it is necessary to restrict it to safeguard their privacy and family life; The crime involves a person where the disclosure of the crime would prove detrimental to the Constabulary; Any crime categorised by a Professional Standards investigation as restricted. The restricting of a crime must be authorised by an officer of at least the rank of Chief Inspector. The authorising person and reason it is restricted must be recorded. It is the responsibility of the person authorising the restriction to ensure the crime is investigated outside normal procedures. Any disagreements on restriction will be referred to the Detective Superintendent CID County Policing Command for a decision. Upd: Review Page 8 of 16

9 Applying Solvability Criteria Crimes which have identifiable relevant lines of enquiry will be immediately allocated to Protective Services Command, Criminal Investigations Department and County Policing Command for investigation. This template will assist in determining which priority and non-priority crimes are allocated for further investigation and determining when all crime investigations should be finalised. A crime will be allocated where any of the following criteria are applied. Solvability Mandatory Crime Yes No Suspect/Person of interest Identified Yes No Evidence which may lead to Suspect/ POI Yes No Detrimental to Community- consider vulnerability of victim/repeat victim No Yes Allocate for investigation Detrimental to Constabulary reputation Yes No Is it series crime as defined by Intel or SNT Yes No Referral to SNT and SNT letter to Victim Upd: Review Page 9 of 16

10 Secondary Investigation Mandatory Crime Mandatory crimes should always be allocated for secondary investigation due to their serious nature and include : Rape and all Serious Sexual Offences Kidnapping Drug Trafficking Causing an explosion likely to endanger life or property Firearms offences Hostage taking Causing death by reckless driving Section 18 / 20 Assaults Arson with intent to Endanger Life Blackmail Perjury Offences where the victim is a child Witness intimidation Dwelling Burglary / Aggravated Burglary / Distraction Burglary Robbery Hate Crimes/Incidents Domestic Abuse Serious harm to the security of the state or to public order Critical Incident Where the crime involves an incident where the effectiveness of the police response is likely to have a significant impact on the confidence of: The victim The victim s family The community Should be allocated for investigation Media Interest Any reported offence that is likely to attract significant media activity for the victim or police, should be allocated for further investigation. Additional Special Factors Some crimes may be allocated for secondary investigation regardless of their classification and include where the following factors are present : Evidence of victimisation. Repeat victim. Vulnerable victim Offence is linked to a crime that is being investigated. Property stolen is hazardous. A weapon was used during the commission of the offence. Upd: Review Page 10 of 16

11 The offence was in or against a significant public building or utility. The offence was against someone serving the public e.g. police officer, nurse, prison officer. There is a marked difference between the actual or mental ages of the suspect and victim. If there is any element of corruption. Crime Allocation Crimes that are within the Mandatory category are usually allocated to Protective Services Command or Criminal Investigation Department. Is there a suspect or person of interest identified? These are crimes where a name of the suspect is known, or by conducting relevant lines of enquiry the identity of the assailant is likely to become apparent. This includes incidents where there is CCTV evidence of previously unidentified suspects. Is there evidence that may lead to a suspect or person of interest? Identifiable Property: The evidence derived from property must link the suspect to the crime. This could include: blood stained glass at a crime scene, property left by suspects at the scenes, a vehicle left or positively identified to have been at the location with suspects inside etc. This relates to evidence immediately available and would not preclude the offence from being allocated for secondary investigation as a result of property outlet checks by nominated officers linking suspects to stolen property or the subsequent identification of unknown forensics marks. Identifiable Evidence: The forensic material available must link the suspect to the crimes and includes: Offender to scene Offender to victim Offender to other scenes Offender to other offenders Intelligence: If a member of public divulges intelligence an IR should be raised on the Crime and Intelligence System. Could it be detrimental to the Force or to the Community? Failure to investigate these crimes may have a detrimental impact upon Norfolk Constabulary or the community within which the victim lives. Further Upd: Review Page 11 of 16

12 consideration is required for repeat victimisation or issues of vulnerability. (see Repeat Victims FPD). These crimes will include those which would attract significant media action because of the type of crime or the victim. For example: Damage to a car belonging to a member of the royal family, theft from a grave. Initiatives + Operations Initiatives and Operations that are identified through the TTCG process and implemented at a District level should be cascaded via the Daily Management Meetings and communicated to the Force Crime Manager. These crimes could be allocated to an Investigating officer, Specialist Department or County Policing Command. Crime Allocation Guide Priority Crime Allocated to Protective Services Command, Criminal Investigations Department, County Policing Command Volume Crime Allocated to County Policing Command Under-Reported Crime Protective Services Command, Criminal Investigations Department, County Policing Command Crime allocated to Specialist Departments e.g. : PSC/CID/VPD will be investigated in accordance with their own processes. Crime allocated for Secondary Investigation SNT Sergeants A crime is allocated by the Crime Development Team based on its status as a crime and its solvability. Solvable Crime (Other than Mandatory Crime) Crimes with solvability criteria will be allocated for further investigation. The crime will be sent using CIS from the Crime Development Team to the County Policing Commands SNT Sergeants who will create an investigation plan which is appropriate for the crime. The SNT Sergeant will allocate the crime to a Police Officer with the appropriate investigation plan and priority grading. The Officer in Case must up CIS with any actions and resulting information, and maintain contact with the victim informing them of significant events in the progress of the investigation. Upd: Review Page 12 of 16

13 Crimes for investigation may be allocated to an individual or to a County Policing Command Investigation inbox. The responsibility for checking and receiving the allocated crime rests with the individual Police Officer and the SNT Sergeants. It is the responsibility of the SNT Sergeant to ensure that all additional appropriate actions are selected from within CIS on the action plan and ups are complete. One of the principles of good investigations is the notion of investigating today s crime today. Every attempt should be made to ensure that crimes are investigated as soon as possible after the crime has been reported. Guidance for Priority Grading:- Gold, Silver, Bronze This grading criterion is applied upon determining the urgency of the enquiry on the investigation plan. Time scales relate to the time the crime was first input onto the Crime and Intelligence system and must be upd within the following timescales:- Gold = 24 hours Silver = 4 days Bronze = 7 days What determines Gold? These are crimes that are determined by area tasking as Gold and require the Investigating Officer to up within 24 hours of the crime being entered into the Crime and Intelligence system. Examples of these include; Prolific offender / Kidnap / Blackmail / Rape. What determines Silver? These are Force Target Crime and Priority Crimes and require the investigating officer to up CIS within 4 days. Examples of these include; Hate Incident or Domestic Violence. What determines Bronze? These are local and all other solvable crimes and require the investigating officer to up CIS within 7 days. Finalisation Crime Development Team There are three ways a crime can be finalised; detected, undetected or no crime. Variations of how a crime can be detected are: Charge Summons Caution Upd: Review Page 13 of 16

14 Conditional Caution Final Warning Reprimand Taken into Consideration (TIC) Fixed Penalty Notice Formal Warning Cannabis (Cannabis warning / street caution) Restorative Justice Extended Professional Judgement (EPJ) A review of the investigation should be carried out prior to finalisation for all crimes to ensure all questions / tasks are completed satisfactorily and the correct National Crime Recording Standards (NCRS) / Home Office Counting Rules have been applied. Definitions The three basic principles of NCRS are: 1. All reports of incidents, whether from victims, witnesses or third parties and whether crime related or not, will result in the registration of an incident report by the police. 2. Following the initial registration, an incident will be recorded as a crime (notifiable offence) if, on the balance of probability: The circumstances as reported amount to a crime defined by law and the Home Office Counting Rules, and There is no credible evidence to the contrary 3. Once recorded, a crime would remain recorded unless there was additional verifiable information to disprove that a crime had occurred. National Standard for Incident Recording (NSIR) To ensure that all appropriate incidents be they crime or non crime, are recorded by Police in a consistent and accurate manner, allowing the resulting data to be used at a local and national level. Notifiable Crimes For guidance as to whether an offence is recordable on the Crime and Intelligence system (CIS): See Section A of the Home Office Counting Rules and the final column of the Home Office Orange Book. Home Office Counting Rules (HOCR) Upd: Review Page 14 of 16

15 The Home Office Counting Rules for Recorded Crime, available via the intranet, details whether and when a crime should be recorded as on the Crime and Intelligence System (CIS). Recorded crimes are notifiable to the Home Office. The Rules also detail when a crime can be recorded as no crime or a detected crime. It is the responsibility of the Investigating Officer to ensure that all detected crimes are recorded as such. The HOCR is the definitive policy document for the recording and disposal of crime. It is the responsibility of all staff to be fully conversant and compliant with this policy. Fingerprint and DNA Identifications The Fingerprint and DNA Identifications FPD details the process and priority given to the investigation of crimes subject to such suspect identifications. Audit Process The Force Crime Registrar is responsible for implementing an audit programme to ensure compliance with HOCR and NCRS. Role and Responsibilities Force Crime Registrar Responsible for: Ensuring compliance with the NCRS. Acting as final arbiter for all crime recording and detection issues, in accordance with the Home Office Counting Rules. Producing an audit plan and undertaking such audits as are nationally recommended. Undertaking thematic audits. Crime Development Team Responsible for: Crime reports are completed to a satisfactory standard. Ensuring classification is correct. Checking the accuracy of supplied data on crime reports. Ensuring fields relevant to accuracy of performance data are completed e.g. violent crime locations, crime indicators. Deciding whether further investigations into a report of crime will be carried out. Ensuring that the victim has been upd by OIC. Upd: Review Page 15 of 16

16 Investigating Officer Responsible for: Conducting a professional and thorough investigation. Ensure all relevant information is recorded accurately and in a timely manner on CIS. Ensuring that all detections have been correctly identified. Ensure that the victim has been upd with all significant events during the course of the investigation. LPC Supervisor Responsible for: Planning and managing quality investigations in a timely manner. Ensuring a high standard of customer service. Ensuring that all victim and witness contact is recorded on CIS. PCSO Responsible for: Conduct tasks to support crime investigations as instructed. Provide a visible presence in locations subject to crime. Ensuring a high standard of customer service. Ensure the community are kept informed by using different methods appropriate to the neighbourhood or individual networks. Ensuring that victim and witness contact is recorded on CIS. Policing Commanders (Superintendent/Chief Inspector) Responsible for: Ensuring there is a defined process to check that all detected crime has been recorded as such.. Upd: Review Page 16 of 16